Down about my cleaning job

[GreenEyes48]

Hey. I am 48 and work for a company cleaning houses. I have been doing this since December last year. I get paid £13.50 per hour. It's started to get me down though. I quite enjoyed it but time and time again teh same people are just too filthy. Leaving shit down the toilet , thick skid marks, wee all over toilets seats , pubic hair and shavings in toilet on floor, shower and baths. Some houses are like a bio hazard and they are paying for a Normal clean. My boss has said few times some are taking the ouss and she will say something . I have had to start wearing a Covid mask to some as the smell is too much and some times the thick dog hairs I feel like I am breathing in. Ami la hairs I can deal with and understand I'm a cleaner but it's when people don't care about bodily fluids etc. I am a really good cleaner and always get good feedback but not sure if I can continue. Anyone else felt like this within a cleaning job .?

I think many people view the cleaning of their homes as literally cleaning up everything after them. Some cleaners are prepared to do this but others not so much. I personally wouldn't expect anyone to clean up after me to that extent. It's grim. Clients should be clear in their expectations. Your boss definitely needs to tackle this asap.

I would drop the really manky ones or advise that you will be raising your fees. Just don't raise them for everyone.

yeah I have heaved loads and I get that I am a cleaner and just get it down but lately I really dread doing certain ones . I can't raise fees as I get paid by my boss who runs the cleaning company. Some houses are like what you see on these fly on the wall documentries. It works round the school hours for my youngest. Dino have stuck with it but not sure I can carry on . I think as said above . I may say I can't do certain houses anymore. I actually looked it up and they come under bio hazard 🥴

I would seriously start looking to start out on ur own. I did this. I choose the jobs I wanted and didn’t want. Eventually u ended up as a housekeeper for one family and now it is what I do.

Yes I have thought about doing it on my own but can't right now but looking to in September. Yes same happened to my mum she ended up house keeper and a nanny for a lovely family just from cleaning .

I've done cleaning work in my time and haven't had to clean anything that nasty.

I would employ you privately in a shot if you lived near me for double what you currently earn. Good cleaners are like gold dust.

I have someone come in and clean for me every two weeks - I always make sure the toilets are evidence-free before she comes! - I could not bear to do otherwise. I know she is there to clean, but I draw the line at scraping my shit off the bowl!!!

By the way, I pay £17.50 an hour. You are being sold short.

My cleaner is freelance. It works well for both of us and we can be flexible for each other.

Thank you to all replies above. Don't know how to direct reply. Yes employ me please lol. I also always make the house look nice and my boss asks me how I do it a certain way etc . I am being sold short but as I work under my boss company I don't pay insurance . I take my own cleaning products but we use her mop and hoover.
also they use same mop for all houses which I find odd. So they have used it all round bathrooms etc then same onto next house. Surley they hill change heads. I started taking direct to floor squeeze flash bottle and doing by hand in bathrooms.

Yeah I don't know how they are not embarrassed about others cleaning up their Punic hair and skids etc . It's very strange .

My mum was a cleaner (not houses though) and they used to get "dirt money: for anything above normal. Maybe suggest that to your boss and it may at least improve things like toilets not being flushed. You could take photos and let her judge if you need extra.
Or she needs to have a 2 tier system with a light clean rate or deep clean rate.

That's a very good idea. She said she will talk to one of the ladies we clean for . As she said she is taking the Micky out of us with what she expects. The lady actually told me her son had left a shit in toilet . It stunk but my boss said she thinks it wa her and just saying it. She often has cat poo on lounge floor also. I think I will start taking photos as suggested and if not sorted say I can't clean them any longer. 🤮

Defo going to suggest dirt money

Ask boss to inform some clients that, due to their absolutely filthy homes, they will be charged double.

Boss should explain that full PPE is required and extra time and also the staff available to work under such conditions are fewer.

Also ask boss to inform that, even when paying double, continuing to clean filthy homes can not be guaranteed, if staff are not prepared to risk their own health and work under disgusting conditions..

It is no loss to lose those clients.

That's foul. I wouldn't dream of leaving skidders on the bowl for another person to clean up. I guess maybe the odd hair is to be expected. But I think you're just unlucky. I can't imagine most responsible female majority households would be that mucky.

Could you branch out on your own? Charge more and have control over who you do and don't work for?

Well this is the thing some are so filthy and they expect us to do it in an hour. I said to my boss we need longer and she said that's not a problem. I was working with one woman that was so quick and made me panic . Telling me to hurry up and unplugging my hoover mid hoovering. She has had complaints and jobs cancelled. So I told my boss what's been hapoening. Apparently she says yes to all the jobs and says she can do them all and she can't as leaving it half done. I will be mentions the above to my boss but I doubt she will do much .

Yes as suggested by others on here re branching out on my own I think it's possible some point. Yeah it's very common . Most houses have skids and piss

If you can’t go freelance yet, I’d suggest finding a different company to work for. That is exceptionally bad practice, expecting you to clean in those situations without correct PPE and extra pay.

Sorry to hear this. We actually do a pre clean before our cleaner comes so she can focus on deep cleaning.

I’d be mortified if any of us including our kids left marks in the toilet etc and expected her to clean it.

Would a different type of cleaning job be available in your area? My kid’s school have advertised for cleaning jobs there and always offer these jobs to parents first, which I think is a great idea. They’ve also just recently advertised for a house keeper for the priests’ house with working hours within the school day so parents could apply. I don’t know how common this is in different areas.

Yes have been thinking of looking to work for another company . As time goes on I am closer to doing it.

Yes have thought about cleaning work in schools but it's usually before and after school hours and I cannot do that right now. :(

alot of these people don't do a pre clean of toilets if any actually. Some people have massive houses nice furniture etc but live in filth

I would like to have a cleaner but our place is so dusty due to the cat and dog i would feel embarrassed