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Firing the cleaner


RobK
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We have a regular pair of cleaners who come round every fortnight, and we have used them for about a year. They are really nice and get on well with my wife and the kids. Today I got a different company to come and do a one-off clean for us, as the regular ones weren't available. Thing is, they did a much better job and are cheaper!

I would like to switch to the new cleaners but I have never had to fire anyone before and am not looking forward to telling them. Should I lie and say we have decided we can't afford a cleaner any more, or should I just tell them straight that we are going to use someone else?

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The key here Rob (I've decided after a few beers) is to use the old "get them to dump you" strategy. In order to exact it in your particular case you need to spend more time half naked in the two regular cleaners' working hours and start dropping in some hints about how they could alter their dress style while cleaning.

One of two things will happen. A) they will embrace this and suddenly become way better as a proposition that the other crowd or B) decide your suggestions of naked cleaning are not conditions they want to work in and tell you they won't be able to work for you any more.

What we have here is a classic win-win I believe.

Let me know how you get on ... +++

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Just be aware the old adage "better the devil you know".

AND all cleaners first few times work like Trojans to try and get an established gig. Other issues come to mind :- trust, reliability etc etc. So unless they really are so much cheaper or so much better stick with what works now is my advice. Perhaps also you may just have to prompt your current ones to do the things that the "new" ones did! Cleaners do get set into a pattern and every now and gain need a little polite nudge to keep the standards up! It's prob the dullest work out there so can excuse a bit of lethargy!

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I would be straight & say you were forced to use someone else & they worked out cheaper + more thorough. Then say you like your incumbent cleaners so would rather stick with them but can they look at their prices/service that way you should get a better/cheaper job without sacking them. Do have examples of things they did better eg cleaned under things.

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Well they called me back this morning and I have given them the heave-ho. I was pretty vague and just said we are looking to save money and they were fine with that. Will be making sure the new lot keep up the standards otherwise they'll be out too!

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Well they called me back this morning and I have given them the heave-ho. I was pretty vague and just said we are looking to save money and they were fine with that. Will be making sure the new lot keep up the standards otherwise they'll be out too!

Coward! :P

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we have a thai cleaner who goes at the whole house in 5 hours, walks through the front door and literally runs to the bedrooms, strips the beds and washes the bedding, does all of the bathrooms (4 off), dusts, hoovers, mops floors, cleans the windows, even including the ground floor outside and the last bit she does is iron the bedding before putting away.

absolutely amazing for £8ph

Would not get that from old biddies or anyone born in Britain

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we have a thai cleaner who goes at the whole house in 5 hours, walks through the front door and literally runs to the bedrooms, strips the beds and washes the bedding, does all of the bathrooms (4 off), dusts, hoovers, mops floors, cleans the windows, even including the ground floor outside and the last bit she does is iron the bedding before putting away.

absolutely amazing for £8ph

Would not get that from old biddies or anyone born in Britain

Don't be so quick to judge mate - mine does and is 30ish and 6 months pregnant and a real trooper!!

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Well they called me back this morning and I have given them the heave-ho. I was pretty vague and just said we are looking to save money and they were fine with that. Will be making sure the new lot keep up the standards otherwise they'll be out too!

It is almost inevitable the standards will slip from the bells&whistle show-clean; give it a few months.

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Familiarity breeds contempt and all that.

We used to go to the same decorators all the time for paint refreshing, wallpapering etc. For years, we went back to the same guy. Then we noticed jobs were taking longer, getting less meticulous and the standards were dropping. Yet prices went up.

Basically we were having to fit in with his timings instead of the other way around - and it transpired it was because he had 'new jobs' to go to and they couldn't budge on times.

We changed decorators. I'm sure the current fella will get just the same in time.

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