If you have a cleaner would this bother you?

[Gymmum82]

We’ve had a cleaner for maybe the last 6 months. I pay her for 2 hours a week. She’s great. Does everything I ask her to and does a really nice job, I’m very happy with her.
However in the beginning she’d stay the full 2 hours and now today she was here 1 hour and 10 minutes. Most weeks it’s between 1.10-1.20.
I know because we have a doorbell camera so I see her come and go.

Would this bother you?
Part of me thinks I’m paying for 2 hours. But the other part thinks why should she be penalised for being efficient?

YABU she’s taking you for a mug and you should sack her

YANBU she’s doing a great job and good on her for being efficient

If the service is 2 hours of cleaning then it’s not done. There’s always something else that can be done

@zebrazoop- most of my clients have been with me for a long time
Once a house is being cleaned regularly (usually weekly) it's easier to maintain a standard. I've invested a lot of money in buying good equipment to help me work efficiently. Skirting boards get done as standard, dusting blinds the same and kitchen cupboards get a wipe down. I don't aim to finish early but if everything is done to the standard promised I'm not going make extra work.

the amount my cleaner charges is different each week according to the hours she has done. This works well for both of us as she has flexibility and I get what I pay for

If you're paying her for the time she's with you then you pay for the actual time

If you're paying her to do 8 (eg) jobs, then you pay her for those jobs , no matter how long it takes

If you are paying her for 2 hours and she doesn't have enough work for 2 hours, create a list of additional jobs which she can choose from to do in her 2 hours, should she finish her core work more quickly

How can she possibly even do a good job in 1 hour 10 minutes?? All the cleaners I've had take 30-45 minutes just for the bathroom. Then there is kitchen, hallway, living room, bedrooms etc.

I'd replace her because this is clearly taking the piss.

I don't consider that a deep clean, it's just cleaning! That's why cleaners are so crap these days, they just do a quick flick with a cloth, they don't clean the house. They stick to dust, vacuum, mop every time and never add in the tasks needed to keep a house clean (and apparently according to this thread even when they do have time to do those). Obviously you don't do them every week but cleaners seem to never do them.

But if you can see there's something needing doing and you have time to do it, why wouldn't you?

I’d go with this approach too - ask her if she is ok or if something happened that meant she had to leave early & if she’d rather make up the time or have it deducted from what you’ve paid.

If she can do what’s required in less time, then that’s what you should be paying for, or she does additional to fill the time.

See how you feel after you speak with her.

You need to give her more to do - changing the beds?

Thank you for all your comments. Just got round to reading them.
I have had cleaners in the past, though not recently and honestly they were crap. Half arsed job. Never to my standard. She is actually the first cleaner I’ve ever been happy with.
In terms of what she does. She cleans the kitchen, bathroom and toilet. Hoovers and mops. Cleans all the window sills and mirrors. Dusting. Hoovers under the sofa cushions.
Im impressed and also surprised she can get it all done so quickly. I couldn’t.

As for people saying you couldn’t leave work early. This is true. But I am also efficient at work and I do get my work done much quicker. And whilst I can’t go home I online shopping, look at holidays, browse the internet, go on mumsnet etc on work time. If I could leave early I would.

So I am quite torn. I like her work. She’s great. Maybe I could try and find extra jobs for her but a lot of jobs people have suggested fall under ‘deep clean’ which comes at an extra cost that I’d rather not pay

Why don’t you just look at it as paying her a lump sum instead of an hourly rate (on the proviso she completes her current tasks to the standard she’s been doing). There are lots of manual jobs like roofing where you wouldn’t pay hourly, you get a quote for a completed job. Giving her extra jobs because she’s efficient at her expected jobs is unfair and she might as well just spend her time scrolling MN too instead of cleaning out the fridge (she’s not had to do before). I mean, it’s not complicated.

What are you paying?

£17 per hour

“I’ve noticed that you manage to get everything done in just over an hour. You’re amazing! I’ll just start paying you for 90 minutes, if that’s ok, as I think on reflection the full two hours isn’t needed.”

Yes but they don’t tend to leave 15 minutes late. It’s not on.

Ah here the rate is £20 per hour. Wales

Also, it doesn’t work for either party if you’re not happy about it, as people tend to say nothing and then find an excuse to stop the arrangement.

Running a cloth across a skirting board, a cupboard door or a painted wall is NOT deep-cleaning. and if your cleaner charges a higher hourly rate (eg £20ph rather than £15ph) for doing that they are ripping you off. It doesn't require any more effort or skill than running a cloth across a counter top or a sink!

Deep-cleaning would usually mean things like cleaning an oven (and all the racks), taking down and degreasing the fan above the cooker, defrosting & cleaning the freezer, completely emptying and scrubbing cupboards & sorting through their contents, removing and cleaning the dishwasher filter, descaling the shower head, cleaning behind radiators and heavy furniture...

Most cleaners don't actually charge more per hour for this sort of thing either, they just ensure that the time they spend on these more intense/ infrequent tasks is compensated.

If someone tells you that they're charging by the hour, then it is reasonable for you to expect them to work for all the hours you're paying for. If they think that they are so brilliant at cleaning that they can work more efficiently and get the whole place done in 70 minutes, then either they need to increase their hourly rate to reflect their superhuman abilities, or tell you that their quoted price is calculated per job, not per hour. Anything else is just dishonest.

And I write this as a former cleaner (who could be tempted to take it up again if anyone on here is in Glasgow and struggling to find a decent cleaner)

I’m a cleaner. If I get paid for 2 hours I clean for 2. If I happen to finish early I often ask if there’s anything I can do. If the client is out I go around double checking.

Give her more jobs to do .

I just adjusted my cleaners down from 3h to 2h after they left after 2h (1h each).

They argued with me a bit about the fact I don't have a doorbell, but I pointed out I wasn't quibbling past invoices for 3h, but wanted a 2h clean ongoing. It's an easy enough house to clean due to laminate floors and usually having one room off limits for the visit due to work meetings.

If they left the place sparking after 2.5h, fine, but there were still odd bits to be done, and I'm not in the business of coaching cleaners how to leave things clean. I'd rather have a basic full clean at 2h than pay for 3h, want it sparkling and not get it.

Of course I would and if there's something specific they want doing on-top of the usual then I'll stay longer. But if it's just a standard clean and it takes me 1.45 instead of 2hrs I'm going leave. I charge by the job so sometimes I'm there 4 hours sometimes 2 but my minimum charge is 2hrs my Clients are happy and their houses are beautiful.

She’s quick! Mine does less than that in three hours at £20 per hour

She is quick, I pay her £40 a week and we both feel it’s working. She’s off of holiday soon and offered an alternative day that I don’t want, so I’ll pay her regardless. We’ve got a good relationship and I think that’s really valuable.

Add ironing or dusting shutters (such as Mumsnet assumptions) or other jobs to fill the time.