What You Should and Should NOT Expect From a Housekeeper

by Modern Maids - May 3, 2022

There are many things to consider when you are choosing who to trust with your housekeeping. It would be best to think about the tasks you’ll expect your housekeeper to complete upfront. It also depends on what you specifically require of them, which you can usually discuss with your chosen cleaner. You can base this on the size of your home and family and whether you should hire a part-time or full-time housekeeper from a trusted maid service.

If you’re ever wondering, here’s a run-through of what you should and should not expect from your housekeeper.

What You Should Expect From A Housekeeper

  1. House Management and Organization

A good housekeeper is much more than just somebody who cleans after the mess. Your housekeeper should be capable of managing your home. Instead of leaving clutter and cleaning around it, they should know where items are kept and organize them appropriately. They should be decisive when it comes to organizing items.

Toys may be lying around in common spaces at home, especially if you have children. A good housekeeper should be glad to clean up the toys and put them back where they belong. What’s harder to clean, actually, are the small items that could be everywhere, like accessories and office items. Trained cleaners should know what to do with them, knowing whether or not something is for disposal or not.

  1. Inventory & Products

A good housekeeper understands that their responsibility is to ensure a sustainable supply of the products required for upkeep and cleaning of the house. The housekeeper, for instance, should reorder goods that have run out. If you’re using a maid service like Modern Maids, you should expect the housekeeper to have a complete set of cleaning tools and equipment when they go to your house. You wouldn’t want to choose a cleaning company that requires you to provide your own tools and products because that’s just extra hassle on your part. 

  1. In-depth Knowledge of the Household

Every household has distinct qualities and requirements. Hence, each family will demand the housekeeper to use different cleaning techniques, approaches, and sometimes, specific products based on their preferences. The cleaners you choose need to be willing to listen and discuss any specific needs, instructions, or requests. A good cleaning company will do their best to adhere to these.

Your housekeeper should also know if you’re okay with chemical cleaners or if you would much rather prefer all-natural products. At Modern Maids, we make sure that we only use products that are safe for you and the environment. The housekeeper should also understand how they all work and use them safely. They should know what the appropriate cleaning tools are to use that will not damage or wear down a household item in any way. 

  1. Adaptability and Flexibility

Being an effective housekeeper requires flexibility and adaptability, especially in a domestic context. You can expect a professional cleaner to have the skills and knowledge to craft a cleaning plan that’s specific to your household, considering that each home is different.

For instance, the family’s head of household may request to deep clean the refrigerator or deep clean the sofa or beds. These kinds of services should be available as an added option for the customers to give them an all-out cleaning experience without needing to look for a separate cleaning provider. The more a housekeeper can step in and help with the household’s requirements, the more stable and long-term their relationship with you, as their employer, will be!

After all, this flexibility will make life easier for the family and the head of the household – and that’s precisely what hiring employees that specialize in a particular field is all about. With an all-around cleaning company, you can be confident to leave all the cleaning to them.

  1. Time Management

A skilled housekeeper should know how to effectively and efficiently manage their time to meet the requirements of their employer. If duties take longer than expected, a competent cleaner will react quickly and ensure that they meet the deadlines all the time. They should never compromise the quality of their work just to meet deadlines. Rather, they should be quick-witted enough to adjust their cleaning plan.

They are, after all, the experts, and thus, they should be aware of the nitty-gritty of their industry. Otherwise, they should be professional enough to be frank to the client and explain to them why the timeline has changed, or what made the job harder than expected.

What Should You NOT Expect From A Housekeeper

  1. Performing Heavy Lifting Tasks

To clean furniture underneath and around it, a good housekeeper knows that they should move the item first. However, as an employer, you must always safeguard your employees, including their health and be aware of their limitations. Something simple for you to lift may cause serious injury to them.

If you need to lift a hefty object, you must undertake necessary health and safety precautions. You might be able to obtain the services of an external employee to lift the furniture for your housekeepers before and after the cleaning. You should always be considerate and teach them any techniques you know to easily clean under or above big or high furniture.

  1. Climbing

Like lifting, your housekeeper must approach climbing higher areas with utmost caution. This isn’t to say that your housekeeper shouldn’t climb; it just means that they should have special training and take extra measures when doing this task.

Do not expect them to be acrobatic and perform life-threatening tricks just to be able to reach the highest crevices, corners, or furniture. You should be able to provide them with the necessary tools, like a step ladder, if you require cleaning for high places.

  1. Picking Up/Cleaning Human or Pet Feces

You might envision your housekeeper being confronted with feces when dealing with ill children, adults, and pets. Just the fact that they will definitely be cleaning toilets, they should have a strong stomach to clean whatever mess is there.

However, it’s crucial to ensure your housekeeper’s safety, health, and security, as well as that dealing with feces and other excrements, may not be suitable or appropriate for them. A professional cleaning company will equip the housekeepers with all the necessary protective tools for such a situation.

However, such responsibility falls on you. Do not expect cleaners to happily handle this for you because it’s a health hazard and could cause or spread diseases. 

  1. Personal Care Responsibilities

Elderly clients frequently require additional degrees of assistance at home. Still, you should not expect a standard maid to provide this type of personal care for your loved ones. You should firmly delegate the duties such as administering medicine or cleaning or washing an older person to a skilled caretaker or an expert in this field.

If you want personal care, you can hire housekeepers who have training and experience as caretakers, allowing them to perform housekeeping and personal care chores. However, regular housekeepers are not trained for this kind of care and should not be expected to handle it for you.

  1. Illegal Activities

You must already know not to ask your housekeeper to do anything illegal as part of their tasks while working in your household. You should not expect your maid to work in such an environment and do the same as you if you engage in illegal conduct. They could be lenient and try to follow your requests, but they know not to allow any kind of illegal activity while they are on the job.

Why Should You Look for a Reliable Housekeeper Recruitment Agency for Your Residence?

The decision to hire a housekeeper for your home is significant. A reliable housekeeping recruitment agency by your side can assist you in making the right choice and finding the ideal match for your specific requirements for a housekeeper. Discuss your requirements for your housekeeper’s working hours and responsibilities with your chosen or prospective recruitment agency for them to find an experienced and well-versed housekeeper that matches your demands.

Having a housekeeper will allow you to spend more time doing things you enjoy, such as spending quality time with your family, working, resting, or traveling. You’ll be able to return to a lovely home with the assurance that your personal belongings are intact without worries. When you go with a professional cleaning agency, they are liable for the work your cleaners will do, so you don’t have to micromanage the housekeepers anymore. 

Why Modern Maids is the Best Modern Solution for You

With years of experience in the industry, Modern Maids has provided top-notch and reliable cleaning services to hundreds of homes. We pride ourselves with a high satisfaction rate across several area providers. Each of our housekeepers has been thoroughly screened and interviewed, after which they undergo continuous training. They are up-to-date with the newest cleaning techniques which make them more effective in their jobs. They are also equipped with a complete set of skills and tools that will leave you feeling ‘wow’. 

Now, it’s easier than ever to book our cleaning services! Schedule a cleaning through this link.