Cleaning as a job. Why it’s better for workers and employers to use an agency

Many people work as cleaners within the consumer and/or commercial sector as it’s a great way to earn a steady income – there is always a need.

Cleaning is a flexible job with varying tasks and duties depending upon the type of cleaning task at hand.  Domestic cleaning generally involves jobs within households or business offices and commercial operations can include cleaning offices, inside and out, and can often be large premises.

If you want a practical job that offers flexibility along with the responsibility of working on your own then cleaning may just be the role for you.

Responsibilities

The job responsibilities will vary from day-to-day, but will normally include duties such as vacuuming, dusting, and wiping surfaces if contracted to clean a home, and cleaning an office space will normally require preparing the office for the start of business, so often involve working outside of normal working hours.

Qualifications

Generally, no specific qualifications are needed, but previous experience is usually deemed helpful.

If using cleaning chemicals and equipment, you may need to follow safety procedures and most companies will cover this in training programmes, along with health and safety.

Employed or Self-Employed?

There is quite a bit of confusion when it comes to deciding if a cleaner is classed as employed or self-employed, but generally speaking, a cleaner will be employed through an agency. The reason for this is because if they were self-employed then they would normally have to provide suitable cover to do a job if they were unable to do it themselves, which then treads into the area of acting as an agency.

The majority of cleaners will work as an employee through a local agency. They will normally receive regular work on a flexible basis, as the agency will be looking for new business contracts, and it’ll also offer extra work if cover is needed on a shift in times of sickness or absence. Plus it removes the need for touting for business.

Most companies will look to hiring a cleaner via an agency for the reliability factor because the cleaner will have been vetted and all relevant checks made to ensure they are working within the law.