To send this message to my cleaner?

[JMSA]

My lovely cleaner has just sent a message to her clients, me included, to let us know that she will be putting up her hourly rate in a couple of weeks’ time. I fully support the increase and had previously told her that she was too cheap! So it will go from £15 per hour to 18.
Thing is though, she’s not always the most reliable. She comes to me fortnightly. And I would say that every 3rd or 4th visit, she cancels on the day. Sometimes she comes the following day instead, other times a whole two weeks later! This is a real pain, to be honest. And although not ideal, it was easier to accept at £45 per visit than £54 (3 hours).
I’d like to tell her that I’m happy to pay the extra and that she deserves it, but that I’d like to see a bit more reliability. How does this message sound?

Hi X! Thanks for the heads-up about your hourly rate increase. As you know, I think you’re absolutely brilliant and I really value the work you do at our place. It’s only fair that this is reflected in what you charge.
It would be much appreciated though, if same day cancellations could be kept to a minimum at the higher rate. It was easier to suck up at £15 per hour! But it would be great to have a bit more reliability, as it helps me plan my week so much better.
Thanks very much and hope you understand!

How does that sound? I want to be polite and fair, but also put my point across.
Thanks 🙂

Do you pay her when she doesnt show up?

No.

I think you’re conflating the 2. She doesn’t get to be less reliable because she’s charging you less. She should be reliable in the first place.

I think you either need to say to her that you need her to be reliable because it’s inconvenient for you when she’s cancelling at short notice, or you need to accept that this is how she is.

don’t make it about the money.

You don’t need to reference the rate rise “easier to suck up at £15” seems crass

It seems a bit passive aggressive to only raise this now that she’s increased her prices.

It doesn’t ring true that the extra £3 an hour is too much to lose. I wouldn’t send it and if she continues being unreliable, raise it when it happens.

I would keep the two things separate.
Thumbs up to the rise, face to face about the cancellations and how irritating it is to be let down.

Really weird that you haven’t discussed it with her before, why is that?

Thanks everyone. I had been meaning to raise it with her anyway, and the price increase seemed to me like an opportune time. Possibly not though 🤔

You are (rightly) pissed off about the unreliableness but I'm not sure what this has to do with the price increase. You should have said something weeks ago. It's no less inconvenient because it's £3 less per hour.

You should really have addressed this immediately after she cancelled one too many times

This

I agree it’s a bit passive aggressive. Acting like you support the fee increase but only if your condition, that you haven’t raised before, is met. I’d raise it separately next time she’s unreliable, she should be reliable no matter how much she charges. And the fee increase is a sensible choice anyway from
what you’ve said.

“Suck it up” is not the phrase to use. You will get her back up

The increase and the reliability are separate so this is a weird message. I’d say “you know I really value your cleaning and completely understand the increase, best wishes….” Then next time she cancels, have a conversation with her about the impact and if there’s a way to work around it that she could maybe do a different day/ be flexible rather than cancel.

Thanks everyone. Really appreciate your input.
I did ask her some time ago to let me know a day in advance, when she can’t make it, wherever possible. But it’s awkward when it’s someone’s health. And she’s a damn good cleaner when she turns up.

Tbh I wouldn’t write that. If she’s unreliable, she’s unreliable whatever the cost. It’s good that you’re bigging her up and supporting her, but in the next breath you’re talking about sucking it up when it’s not good. Acknowledge the increase as “all good , no problem and thanks for letting me know.”

When she next comes round to clean, I’d just keep it professional and say that you’ve been sorting finances and putting aside her money for her (make out that you move it from another account/had to take into the account the increase ,if needs be)….but it has made you realise that you get let down occasionally and sometimes at very short notice. Whilst you appreciate that she might make up the time on another day , due to your family and work commitments, it really needs to be committed schedule.

you will run the risk of upsetting her or losing her, but at the end of the day you’re paying her for a service and she’s running a business. You’re not “friends” you’ve both committed to something. The only risk is that she will leave and if you think she’s fabulous, sometimes good cleaners are hard to come by.

This.

I had a flaky cleaner, and at the time it kind of suited us. But it's not connected to her rate change.

Next time it happens, ask if you can agree a fixed slot she can achieve reliably, because you don't like the moves.

Yeh they're two separate issues, and if it's her health that's the problem then I'm not sure how £3 extra an hour is supposed to sort it for her to be more reliable?

It really depends why she doesn't turn up.

My cleaner has had to cancel a few times because she was ill, generally the day before but sometimes on the day, and I don't think it would be justified to call her out on it.

When I'm sick from work, I get to call on the day too. You can't predict or control sickness.

For any other reasons, I'd probably be annoyed.

I had a cleaner like this, eventually (after a long time) I politely told her that I needed someone who could commit to a regular slot. Ive now got someone reliable and I cant believe I tolerated someone not turning up so frequently, it's so nuch nicer when everyone knows where they are, what is happening etc! I agree with others, reliability has no connection to hourly rate

If you don’t pay her when she doesn’t turn up then how was it easier to suck up when it was £15 an hours vs £18 an hour when you weren’t losing any money because she wasn’t getting paid that makes no sense.

Exactly.

No OP, only bring it up next time she lets you down last minute

Because her not being reliable was traded off against her not being that expensive.

But I would think of it as less an actual increase and more an adjustment for inflation. Although OP may not have had the same pay rise since cleaner last put up her rates.