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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

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Original poster

Domestic cleaners

30 replies

wholelottahistory · 11/05/2020 08:43

Can your cleaner come back? Are they one of the 'can't work from home' so encouraged to get to work this week?
And if they refuse, will they still be entitled to the 80% self employment help from today onward?

OP posts:

Shoxfordian · 11/05/2020 08:53

I hope my cleaner comes back

thetigerthatcamefortea · 11/05/2020 08:54

They can't work from home....
if you can implement social distancing....
then yes, I think they can

Charlieiscool · 11/05/2020 08:58

I’m wondering about this too. If she wears gloves when she cleans and we keep the social distance then isn’t it ok?
I admit this is a trivial problem but I’m paying her to stay at home and getting fed up of doing all the housework.

Hobbesmanc · 11/05/2020 09:13

As cleaners can't work from home they could always have carried on working if they anted to- and thousands of public sector and commercial cleaners have been working as normal. But many people chose to cancel their services because of transmission concerns or changes in personal circumstance.

We've continued paying ours and hope she will think about coming back soon.

TheoriginalLEM · 11/05/2020 09:15

Wow- you want to put your cleaner at risk because your sick of doing housework.

MojoMoon · 11/05/2020 09:17

The agency I use says they will restart the week after next.

Various requirements around social distancing that may be challenging as I am now working from home and it's not very big so maybe I will need to go out for my exercise during her visit.

They are increasing fees slightly to cover four weeks paid leave for cleaners so that if they have any symptoms or are told they have been exposed, they can stay at home without losing money.

I have been paying in the meantime.

Barkingfuckingdogs · 11/05/2020 09:17

Cleaners could always work. It's been a personal choice if you've not had them in.

Original poster

wholelottahistory · 11/05/2020 09:21

It was our cleaners choice not to come.
She is fully expecting to get the Self Employment Income Support Scheme payments however, at 80% of what she normally would earn.
I really hope she gets this.....

OP posts:

Kazza487 · 11/05/2020 09:23

Hi, I have a domestic cleaning service and we have started back. We contacted our clients first to see who wanted us back, then devised strict guidelines for social distancing. We will only enter a house that is empty, or if the clients can restrict themselves to a room that they can go without being cleaned. They must stay out of the house, or in the room for the duration of the clean. We wear disposable gloves for each clean, use hand sanitiser in between and spray our equipment with disinfectant before entering each house. We’ve also reduced the number of cleans in a day so we’re not doing too much driving and we’re not in and out of too many properties either. We wrote a letter to our clients stipulating our terms too to cover ourselves. If you can follow similar guidelines, there’s no reason why your cleaners can’t start back. That’s if they want too of course. Our clients missed us so jumped at the chance lol.

Tootsey11 · 11/05/2020 09:28

Cleaner here. No-one wants me back yet

ScotsinOz · 11/05/2020 09:32

In Australia, so slightly different. I kept my cleaners initially (2 x cleaners coming on two days, 6 hours each per day). Then in school holidays I asked them not to come, but continued to still pay them. They are coming back next week and I am so excited! They clean at my parents one day a week for 6 hours and my brothers one day a week for 6 hours (they each work a total of 24 hours week over four days) and they continued to clean there as they were happy to work and my parents and brother were happy to have them clean (and could stay out the way when they were there, as no children in the house). Had my cleaners not been happy to work, I would have paid them until they were happy to return (unless they were trying it on).

SmileyClare · 11/05/2020 09:53

Tootsey I'm a cleaner too. It's difficult isn't it? Two of my clients are families working from home with older children so it's difficult for them to have a cleaner banging about and hoovering round them and the teens are in bed and I can't clean their rooms.

I've let my customers know I'm available to work and outlined my new measures; washing hands on arrival, working upstairs while family downstairs (or outside) and vice versa, distancing at all times, wiping down all surfaces with anti bac including handrails, cupboard handles and door knobs before I leave.

I'm hoping I won't be asked to wear a mask. Simply because not only will I need to replace the mask frequently and they're difficult to buy, but also because it's the summer, the work is strenuous and I get incredibly hot wearing a mask to the point of feeling quite ill and overheated.

I will stop work and quarantine if I have symptoms and clients need to cancel if they have symptoms.

So those are my new measures. I'm desperate to get some money coming in. I've been on zero income since the end of March. The government self employment scheme is yet to be awarded (possibly mid June) and will barely cover the debts and bills which have mounted up. I certainly can't live on that money.

I am waiting for customers to ask for me back. I'm usually completely booked out and I want to remain loyal but will have to take new clients in June if my existing client base are still hesitant to have me back.

SorrelBlackbeak · 11/05/2020 09:59

We've spoken to our cleaner today and said we're happy for her to come back when she wants to.

The rules will be the same as those set out above - kitchen, bathrooms and sitting room only so she doesn't have to be in the same room as any of us at all. we supply cleaning materials but she has her own box so no one else will touch it and will supply gloves etc.

emz771 · 11/05/2020 10:02

I miss mine like crazy - literally like crazy.

No way on earth would I have her back. Say she does 4 households a day - thats 20 different households a week. That’s just bonkers!

I miss her - but I’ll carry on with some superficial cleaning for a couple of months - not risking my family for some shiny taps!

Original poster

wholelottahistory · 11/05/2020 10:06

We have her for a whole day 10 hours and I think another client has her for 2 days.
I can only manage either the downstairs or upstairs each week not both.
Dh has been helping her a lot as she was going to run our of money at he end of April as most clients had stopped paying her. We continued until the end of April and are now loaning her money to be paid back when the government payment comes through.

OP posts:

Mustbetimeforachange · 11/05/2020 10:06

They've always been allowed to work if you look at the guidance (quick, before it changes!) Asking as they socially distance etc etc. We chose not to have ours as it's hard to keep out of their way with 4 in the house & DH is shielding (one of the exceptions to allowing cleaners listed in the guidance).

Tootsey11 · 11/05/2020 10:08

SmileyClare, same for me with the mask situation. I get warm/hot when cleaning anyway, to add a mask on top of that would be unbearable. I couldn't do it. I would like to return even to just a couple of houses and stick with that for a couple of weeks to see how that goes. Build up very gradually.

emz771 · 11/05/2020 10:09

Each to their own - but I think it’s bonkers to have them back! And this is from somebody who misses her like mad!

Gooseygoosey12345 · 11/05/2020 10:10

In my opinion they technically shouldn't be as you're not to mix households, but on the other hand they can return to work as long as they can follow distancing measures. There's not really clear guidance for each scenario so it's going to be common sense and personal choice.

Original poster

wholelottahistory · 11/05/2020 10:13

There's not really clear guidance for each scenario so it's going to be common sense and personal choice.

All very well, but your choices might affect what payments you are entitled to so it should be clear.
Not working when you technically can might be construed as disinclination to work and they might then be told they cant get government money, which would be awful if they had been expecting it.

OP posts:

PatchworkElmer · 11/05/2020 10:13

We told ours not to come the week before lockdown, and when lockdown kicked in she messaged all clients to say she would stop working. I have no idea what her plans are now, but I wouldn’t have her back yet. We are still paying her though- although I suspect that most if not all of her other clients aren’t.

ProtectAll · 11/05/2020 10:18

@wholelottahistory wow your house must be huge! My DP have what I thought was quite a large detached property and only needed a cleaner for 1 day a fortnight. I have a modern 4 bed detached and only have 4 hours per week.
Anyway neither of us will be having our cleaners back yet, DP because DM is shielding and prefers dust to the virus, and as I nor my my siblings are allowed inside yet I can't see the logic in the cleaners going in. If they decide that they need help then one of us (siblings are all currently furloughed) who have been self isolating during lockdown will go and clean.

I am going to keep ours off until at least June and more likely longer, I am vulnerable (not shielding) and working from home. However I will discuss with DH about paying them, we offered before lockdown but then they said they were using the furlough scheme (company not self employed)

emz771 · 11/05/2020 10:18

Unless you have a disability or at an age where you aren’t able to clean yourself - I can’t think of one valid reason why you would put your family at risk.

Normandy144 · 11/05/2020 10:25

We can't have ours back until the kids are back at school. If it were just DH and I at home we could socially distance while she was here but with 2 young children and us working full-time it isn't going to be possible. We'll continue to pay her for the time being until things are safer and the alert level reduces to at least 2.

Toddlerteaplease · 11/05/2020 10:27

Mine still comes. She's happy too. The agency has put guidelines in place. And I go out

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