I'm an experienced highly qualified Early Years Educator and at work today at a creche I spent approx 3 hours deep cleaning as per current regs - I think this is neither sustainable nor desirable AIBU

[Germolenequeen]

AS ABOVE

In the NHS infection control is everyone’s responsibility - it wouldn’t work if nurses and doctors did not play their part in cleaning .

@Kazzyhoward

Not ideal, but it's happening in all professions. I went to the opticians last week (small independent) and he's wiping down his own eye test room between tests. I'm an accountant and a client needed the loo when he dropped off some paperwork - I had to go in afterwards to clean it all after him. It's unpecedented times and we really can't be snowflakes about it. Nor can we all have cleaners stood around doing nothing just in case something needs cleaning occasionally.

At the opticians you're describing a wipe down, not a deep clean. There's a distinction, and even if there weren't I expect plenty of us would also be concerned if it meant they, like OP, had much less time available to spend on providing specialist services essential to the wellbeing and functioning of the population.

Also as another well qualified early years professional, doing the cleaning is above my pay grade...
I earn not much above the minimum wage, cleaners in my area get above £10 an hour!
So we are being underpaid for cleaning whilst feeling like we are letting the children down.

PooiePooie,

If someone is having to don and doff full PPE between each patent then how long do you think that will take over the course of a full working day, plus emergencies?

Bakedtreat, no male exemption hence equal in healthcare here, male and female both do what's required. Broadly the same amounts of non-compliance and moaning by gender in my unrepresentative experience with the worst individual being a woman then next two worst are both men.

I would be beyond pissed off if i went for a gp appointment and during the appointment the gp cleaned the room whilst i was sat there and because she was cleaning she couldnt take my blood pressure or look in my ear and then just sent me off and the end of my 10 minuted. Particularly if cleaning the product was one that triggered my asthma

I think schools and childcare settings should 100% have additional cleaning budgets. I also think a couple of people are being dismissive towards those in other professions such as; healthcare.

It is what it is. I’m sorry things have changed and it’s impacted you work. Mine too.

Most people are cleaning their workstations themselves though at the moment. I think we all just have to accept these are not normal times. Daily we see on MN people terrified of sending their kids into a nursery/school setting becausr of Covid but have to because they have to go back to work. It would be reassuring to know that the creche you work in is taking this seriously.

IS the creche a nursery for full day care? To me a creche is a temporary or short term care setting. If different kids are in and out all day there needs to be constant cleaning to minimise the risk of spread.

It won't last forever.
It might if we "suck it up" without protesting, and allow it to become the (vomits) "new normal".

I'm sure that one reason lockdown has lasted as long as it has (much longer than Boris's "we can turn this around in twelve weeks") is because the public swallowed it in one gulp, and just "sucked it up". The government were surprised by the public obedience, so they strung the public along as much as they could.

We need to make it clear that things like this are NOT sustainable. If we just quietly "suck it up" like the good obedient unquestioning children that Boris wants us to be, the madness will remain for longer, and will become more normalised. We need to be making NOISE about this.

Maybe I should have elaborated - those 3 hours took me away from interacting with children which is what I'm employed to do.

Oh I think your point was pretty clear. When people say you should suck it up they are saying the children should suck it up.

But god forbid a woman say that cleaning isn't her job, you might as well just hop up on the pyre to be the evening entertainment after an afternoon of races to the bottom.

Whilst the current situation has brought about many changes to peoples lives, the greater burden of it (including extra unpaid cleaning, childcare and job losses) has fallen on women. Women should speak out about this, along with the "anyone can do it" attitude to other women's jobs.

Deep cleaning is pointless. Regulars cleaning is what is recommended. And I’m afraid I cannot see how we don’t all have to do this in order to live with the virus.

Of course we say, hire more staff. But pushing up the cost of everything makes everything too expensive to afford. If you cannot try to understand the economics of this, you are a fool.

@wagtailred
Yes! I commented something similar earlier! Much of this 'problem' is completely fabricated. The government are not providing extra money for cleaners etc because this level of cleaning is simply not required.

@BillBaileysBum

I’m a professional with a medicine related masters degree and I’ve been working full time AND being a pseudo bloody primary and secondary teacher since March.

We’re all having to do extra stuff this year. Suck it up, Buttercup. 2020 doesn’t care about your CV.

And that makes you different how? The OP didn't mention her CV. Get off your stealth boast high horse.

Oh I think your point was pretty clear. When people say you should suck it up they are saying the children should suck it up.

But god forbid a woman say that cleaning isn't her job, you might as well just hop up on the pyre to be the evening entertainment after an afternoon of races to the bottom.

Essentially.

@Slimeafterslime

Oh come on, we all have to do things beneath our pay grade.

For three hours out of the working day?

@MillyMollyMardy

I'm a dentist, we always did a lot of cleaning. The whole team is cleaning at the moment. Our cleaner is only cleaning non clinical spaces. Do we mind all cleaning? No, not if it reduces risk to our patients. Currently our cleaning regime is really time consuming. It is unsustainable as the social spacing, fallow times all cuts into our time to actually see and treat people. We're 4 months behind on our routine appointments due to closures. I'm not sure if we will ever catch up.

My dentist appointment was cancelled in spite of needing a filling.

My husband and my children couldn’t get an appointment and are waiting.

We’ve had hospital appointments cancelled and haven’t been able to see a dr in person for months (ongoing condition needing treatment)

All of the above is done so that they can keep clean and healthy.

Now tell me how you’d manage while working as normal. Tell me how the children can wait in the day. They can’t.

It’s the same in practically every other industry.

The big DIFFERENCE is that in the health services etc they’re cancelling left, right and centre in order to do what’s needed re cleaning etc. In education (early years, and certain year groups from June and in all year groups when they come back).

You have all the children all the time and all their usual demands PLUS the other job of cleaning (which, let’s face it) could easily be another job). Children don’t wait. Something has to give.

Isn't it funny that the majority of workplaces being forced to clean regularly are also the workplaces most often worked in by women?

Can't help but feel that if banks or offices were affected to the same degree as nurseries and schools, there would be more support from the government for providing cleaning materials and manpower

Yep.

You only need to "deep clean" if you have had a confirmed case of COVID 19. Otherwise normal cleaning with normal products is fine. It should just be more regular.

My setting is opening again in September.

I'm not going to be whipping toys away from children to wipe them down and start wiping pencils between touches but the toys will be cleaned at the end of each session where they aren't normally.

I'm not washing their hands every 20 minutes either. I have been struggling with dry skin. When I spoke to the pharmacist he said if I let it dry out the skin will crack and then dust and dirt can get in and cause infection of the area...I saw children before lockdown who were washing and sanitising so much that their skin was cracked and sore. We will be washing "more regularly" but every 20 minutes is ridiculous.

Its guidance...you need to interpret a lot of it for yourself. Said guidance says that EY settings dont need bubbles and recognises children cant social distance. So the children are sat next to each other, still very much learning to cover their sneezes, touching one another, stroking each others hair etc but we are freaking out about the rims of the plastic boxes they might touch? Please!

We will be cleaning, it will be a higher level than it was but I'm not going over the top.

@ArthurMorgan

No..Dont 'suck it up' - just people need to understand exactly what is going on in schools. If you 'suck it up' like the other posters are suggesting, then everyone will just listen to the lying politicians and believe its all fine. People should tell their truths.

this

But it isn't just going on in schools. It is going on in loads and loads of work places up and down the country. If they can't afford to pay for a full time cleaner, then staff are having to do it.

These are not normal times and we can all expect to be asked to work outside our normal roles.

@HoneysuckIejasmine

Depends, how often do you need to do it and could your setting afford to hire someone to do it other than you?

and what would she do ? Watch ?

Maybe your setting and you should read the guidelines and stop doing unecessary cleaning.

Or is that not interesting enough?

So you are all fine with less supervision and care for children? Won’t mind if the ratio’s are not followed ? If children receive less care than normal?

The thing is deep cleaning after a case is a bit ridiculous isn’t it? Surely the cleaning is a preventative measure ?

But it isn't just going on in schools. It is going on in loads and loads of work places up and down the country. If they can't afford to pay for a full time cleaner, then staff are having to do it.

And they’re limiting their services because of it and to give themselves them time to do what they need to do. Can’t happen when children are around.