If you are the owner of a business or an office manager, you will already know and understand the benefits of having a clean office space. To learn more about how office cleaning improves your business you can read our blog here.

However, once you have decided you need a cleaner for your workspace the next question is often, should you hire an agency cleaner or employ your office cleaner?

In this blog, we will explore the pros and cons of each, and which option is the most suitable choice for your business.

Pros of Employing your own Office Cleaner

As well as the benefits of having a clean office, choosing to employ your own office cleaner comes with its own unique benefits.

You can set your own cleaning schedule

When employing your own cleaner, you can set the exact parameters that suit your business’s needs. That includes the hours, days, and times. You don’t have to be flexible to fit in with any other business. The job advert you use just needs to specify exactly what hours you’re employing for and that way you’ll only get applicants that can meet your requirements.

You are in control of the hiring process

You will be able to select the candidates and conduct all the interviews, meaning the choice of whom to employ will be entirely in your hands.

They become a part of your team

Often, employing your own cleaner can make them feel part of the business. They can be involved in work-social events, and relevant company meetings and be kept up to date about the company they are working for.

Cons of Employing your own Office Cleaner

Like with any business decision, there are also downsides to consider. When employing your own cleaner, there are potential cons for you to be aware of.

Time-consuming hiring process

Unless you have an HR department that handles the hiring of employees, this is likely to be down to the business owner or office manager. Hiring a new member of staff can often be time-consuming, taking you away from other areas of your work to carry out CV checks, interviews, and inductions.

Associated costs of hiring an office cleaner

While you may make a small saving on agency fees, often the cost of hiring your own employed office cleaner is far higher. When you consider tax, national insurance, pensions, uniform and cleaning equipment, it’s incredibly costly to employ your own cleaner.

Managing another member of staff

When you employ a member of staff, you also need to carry out employment reviews, as well as any other ‘housekeeping’ duties. This can include any complaints, pay reviews, feedback etc. Again, it’s an added layer of complication and more time that could be utilised in other areas of the business.

Pros of Hiring an Agency Cleaner

Choosing to hire an agency cleaner comes with many benefits for your business.

The hiring process is handled for you

Every single time-consuming task involved with hiring a cleaner for your office will be taken care of. By hiring an agency cleaner, the agency will manage every step of the hiring and induction process, meaning you only ever need to go through this once with the agency manager, they will take care of the rest!

More cost-effective

When hiring an agency cleaner you pay one straight fee for the cleaning service and don’t have to worry about anything else! If you would also rather the agency provide the cleaning equipment and products, you can choose to find one who will do this for you.

Hazardous waste isn’t your problem!

By using agency cleaners, they can deal with hazardous waste products. They are likely offering this service to other clients, so, speak to your agency if this is likely a service you’ll need.

Cons to Hiring an Agency Cleaner

There are also some potential factors when hiring an agency cleaner, that may make the decision unsuitable for your business.

Different cleaner each time

One of the biggest concerns is that there will be a high turnover of cleaning staff and that they will never have the same cleaner each time. However, we want to assure you that with the right agency that takes care of their staff, this is highly unlikely to be the case. If you prefer to have the same cleaner, we can arrange this on the rota for you.

Poor communication

Another worry is that communication will get lost in translation and feedback won’t be executed. Again, we want to give you the reassurance that when you hire an agency cleaner, the manager is regularly in communication with all staff, holding weekly catch-up meetings as well as communicating with you, the employer.

If you are considering hiring a cleaner for your office and are unsure if an agency cleaner would be suitable, give us a call to discuss your requirements today and we will happily advise you on the best step forward for your business.