WWYD - Cleaner not working the hours she's paid for?

[abbijay]

I know this is a serious case of #firstworldproblems but I don't know what to do. Please grab a brew and biscuits 'cos I'm not one for getting straight to the point.
I've had the same cleaner working for me for about a year now, I found her through a facebook group and initially she came 3 hours a week on a changing day but I saw her more weeks than I didn't. Things have changed with both of our employment and now she always comes on a day I'm at work although my hubby does see her some mornings before he sets off.
I have tried over the last few months to catch up with her during her normal working hours at my house but she has always gone by the time I get there (I have varied this from just before she's due to leave to an hour or more before). Finally this week I was off ill so I've seen her.
I pay her cash for working 3 hours a week and I know she doesn't work the full 3 hours. But there's a bit early and then there's a whole hour (or more)!
My dad was looking after my little boy the other week at home and she said she was leaving early but would catch up the time the next week. I text her the next week and said my in-laws would be there before she left but she'd changed her mind and would be working only half the extra last week and half this week.
So this week she turned up at normal time (just before 9), she told me she had a doctors appt. at 11.20 (not that she was sorry she'd be leaving early or would pop back later to finish) and when I got back in from my own doctors appt at 10.50 she'd gone! We use the same doctors and it's 2 minutes from my house so why was she gone 30 minutes or more before the appt?! So she'd done less than 2 hours work but was supposed to be doing 3 1/2 hours.
In the year she's been working for me her standards of cleaning have dropped, dusting is not done upstairs and no high level dusting is done at all! I know she's picked up more cleaning work on the same day but that shouldn't change things for me surely?
WWYD? Sack her and look for a new cleaner? Speak to her (but it would have to be phone or text as it's taken me 5 months to see her this time and I am rubbish at the confrontation thing)? Just cut the money to 2 hours pay in future and see what happens?

[threesocksmeghan]

Your friend is lucky. Take off the cost of cleaning products and time/petrol travelled to/from the job and that cleaner is definitely working for less than minimum wage!

[PoisonousSmurf]

Wow! Expensive in the S.E. My friend's cleaner only costs £8, so 3 hours is £24 AND she brings her own cleaning stuff (no vac).
Lives in the South West (rural).

[StickyWick]

I think I'd sack her unless you really like her then you just need to talk to her ( you really don't need to confront her though.). Just tell her that you've noticed that she is working short hours and remind her that you are paying per hour not for the job.

I've had the same cleaner fo the past 8 years and she literally never comes late or leaves early. She works hard and is probably my favourite person in the whole world 😍

[SallyVating]

I've had the same cleaner for years and we're at the point where if it takes her 5 mins or 5 hours I pay her the three we agreed and it's up to her as long as the work is done.

[Increasinglymiddleaged]

I can assure you it isn't impossible. But she is quite superwoman like. Plus I didn't say the house is big, it isn't particularly. It is also every week.

[Mallowmarshmallow]

Every single cleaner I've had has done this but as a pp said, I can't abide lying so I get rid of them each time.

I don't have one currently but once childcare fees aren't so crippling I intend to get one at some point in the future but will do the same again.

[BoomBoomsCousin]

*Role not Roll!

[BoomBoomsCousin]

People tend to under estimate the skills needed to be good at being self-employed. Lots of people who end up cleaning are doing it because they don't have a whole range of choices but they know how to clean, not because they are good at self-motivation, self-appraisal, time management, self-regulation, business development, etc. Cleaning tends to be a low status job and not highly paid. It's not unreasonable to think that, to get a good experience , you may need to do more management of a cleaner than you need to of, say, a solicitor.

If you want to talk to her and give her an opportunity to improve, tell her you need to talk to her face-to-face and you will there at x time [a time when she is supposed to be there]. So you aren't "trying to catch her" during her working hours, you've made an appointment she knows about. If she tries to make an excuse say you need her to be there if she wants to keep the job. I think this is the more reasonable way to deal with it. If you have people working for you, you need to manage them and this is a pretty basic management scenario.

But if you can't step up to that management roll, let her go and try someone else. She does seem to be chronically short on her time at your place and has letting standards slip, which can a hard thing to turn around. If you give her another chance, make sure you don't let her get away with pushing boundaries any time soon, expect her to be really trying to up her game (unless there's a problem she's facing that requires compassion).

[daisychain01]

I agree all that "making up time" bollox is just a platitude.

And then making up the time split into piddly little slots like 15 mins 1 week, 30 mins the next week. Useless as a chocolate fireguard.

Nah, they should do the hours they are 'contracted' to do and stop messing around.

[TestingTestingWonTooFree]

We had this with cleaner 1 and 3. It never gets better. I was glad when they left. Should have had the balls to sack them. Challenging doesn't really help because you've uncovered they are dishonest. If you're out, they can take the piss. Thankfully we're on to 4 who's great. Not necessarily the best at cleaning, but trustworthy, sensible and uses initiative.

[brassbrass]

I was paying mine £10 p/h but place was tidied just wanted her to dust hoover clean common areas not the bedrooms.

She would spend ages in the kitchen never enough time in the bathroom and leave half an hour early. And I was IN the house at the time.

Good trustworthy cleaners and carers are like gold dust.

[mikesh909]

This is why I stopped having cleaners. The last agency I used sent different people every week - not great in itself and insisted that what I wanted doing would take a minimum of 3 hours. The last girl who came left after an hour and twenty minutes. So either the agency lied in order to tie me down to more hours than I wanted or the cleaner didn't clean to the thorough standard I had been promised. In either case, anyone with a sniff of initiative would have been able to pinpoint any number of jobs to fill the remaining 40 minutes but sadly this didn't happen either. When it started seeming like I was spending more time telephoning / emailing cleaners, showing new ones around, making complaints about inefficient ones etc than it would take me to just clean the place myself, it was time to make a change!

[fzz33]

brassbrass £15/hr inc products so £45. I'm in the South East

[MatildaTheCat]

I had a cleaner who cleaned for my friend before me each week. I began to notice she was arriving earlier and earlier which meant she must have been leaving my friend's house at least an hour early each time. Friend wasn't at home whereas I am.

I fired her because I found it dishonest ( and she wasn't great and made no effort whatsoever to learn enough English to be able to communicate at all). Interestingly my friend who was the one getting the time stolen kept her on for quite a while after that.

[MissCherryCakeyBun]

Brassbrass the going rate round here ( Hertfordshire/Harpenden) is £12-15 an hour minimum of 2-3 hours depending on how often they come. Also cleaner does not provide cleaning items

[chocatoo]

I would leave her a comprehensive list next week advising what you need doing. If it's not all done to your satisfaction, then time for you to look elsewhere.

[MissCherryCakeyBun]

She's not a Harpenden cleaner is she? I've just had exactly the same problem but including going sick with no notice and just not turning up despite being paid by bank transfer 😡

I'm now hunting for a new cleaner if anyone in Harpenden knows one ???

Good luck in your search as good cleaners are hard to find

[ExConstance]

This situation is why I use an agency to supply my cleaner, I don't know who she is, when she comes during the day but I do know that if everything isn't done to a very high standard I can complain without having to speak to her directly. Fortunately the cleaning the agency does has so far been tip top.

[brassbrass]

fzz33 how much would the 3 hours every fortnight cost?

[EweAreHere]

Sack her. She's stealing from you: she's taking money for a service she's not actually providing as promised.

[PoisonousSmurf]

One cleaner at a friend's house would clean the bathroom and shower with a spray cleaner, rinse it well and then spend time drying it all with microfiber cloths, finishing off with paper towels to get every hint of water spots off the chrome and sanitary ware.
That job would take at least an hour by itself. But would look fantastic!

[fzz33]

As a cleaner myself I can say if you're doing a proper job it isn't possible. We do 3 hours every two weeks for 2 bed places. Very rarely do weekly cleans and suggest every two weeks but for longer. It's not cost effective for either party as the time starts from when you pull up, so includes unloading/reloading the equipment (we supply everything) from the car. We clean everything though. Skirting boards, banisters, windows, even pull out appliances in the kitchen etc.

[PoisonousSmurf]

I'd be more suspicious of a cleaner who managed to clean a big house (4 bedrooms) in less than 3 hours. What are they cleaning it with?
One cloth, on everything?
Yuck!