There are so many reasons it is wise to really know your cleaning service and the people they employee. First and foremost, you must protect the people who work, live or frequent the facilities you manage. Second, when you hire a cleaning company with a great, trustworthy staff, you can be reduce the chance of damage to your building and its contents, insure good work and even prevent theft. Third and last, when you have a good understanding of the people in your building and good communication with your cleaning service, getting great service is much more attainable.
Why Some Cleaning Companies Are Plagued With High Employee Turnover
In general, the cleaning industry has a higher than national turnover rate. This is not uncommon in industries that employee large numbers of comparatively unskilled labor. Now mix in low wages, no benefits and poor management and you have a recipe for high turnover and poor service. Due to some incorrect perceptions about how cheap and easy it is to start a cleaning business, many people get into and then disappear just as quickly. These type of fly by night operations likely contribute to the higher attrition rates. While there is a relatively low start up cost, a cleaning service is still serious business. Small start ups and one man and a van operations just aren’t likely to understand how to find, screen and train good people. An established commercial cleaning company with a strong reputation and proven record is going to naturally have fewer personnel issues and lower turnover.
How Some Janitorial Services Are Doing It Right
While the industry average attrition rate for cleaning companies is on the higher side, there are professional cleaning companies out there that are managing to reach high levels of employee retention and keep their turnover rates well below industry average. Managing a largely unskilled labor pool can present its own challenges but there is plenty of opportunity there too. Low wage doesn’t have to mean lowest wage and unskilled workers don’t have to stay that way. Cleaning companies that offer competitive wages, benefits packages, high-level training and a great place to work, attract good people who are ready to work. The very best janitorial companies understand that competitive wages and benefits like profit sharing and health insurance keep good people from going elsewhere. They also know that solid training can turn a good employee into a great employee and help create an ever-growing pool of talent and expertise. The most successful cleaning companies also understand the value of committing to their people through making sure employees are heard and valued.
Training, Support & Systems Means You Get a Solid Cleaning Team
Is your cleaning company capable of attracting quality people? It can be tough to find great people for relatively unskilled labor positions, but it isn’t impossible. If a cleaning company or janitorial service cares about their people and offers the training, support and systems to support them, you have a far better chance of getting the kind of building maintenance you need. Ask you cleaning service or prospective janitorial company where they stand as far as their employees are concerned. They should convey an overall positive view of their people.
The cleaning company should be able to tell you precisely how they screen and which background checks they use to insure the people in your building do not have a criminal record or other risk factors. If your janitorial company or cleaning service is taking shortcuts when it comes to screening and background checks, they are putting you, your people and your facility at risk. Whether you have a current cleaning service or you are looking to outsource your cleaning, your cleaning company should ensuring any cleaner will be a good fit at your facility. Picture identification badges and uniforms are a great way to help everyone know who a person is and why they are in your building.
Furthermore, a professional cleaning service should be able to show you the same materials they use to train their people and explain how they can train your team to give you personalized service. They should be able to tell you how they can make a near seamless transition if one of your cleaning team member leaves. Your prospective commercial cleaning company should be proud of the fair compensation, benefits and value they offer their own employees. Lastly, they should be able to show you their plan to work out any kinks with your team and guarantee the kind of responsive service you and your facilities require.
Partnering With the Best Cleaning Companies to Forge a Long-term Relationship
When you do the work to find a professional, qualified janitorial company that employees great people, you are rewarded with consistent, responsive service and a great long-term relationship with your cleaning company. With so many cleaning companies flooding the market, figuring out who will be a good fit and put safety first is no slam-dunk. Still, in this instance, doing the work and asking questions ahead of time can eliminate big future problems and insure the safety of everyone in your building and a lasting positive partnership with your commercial cleaning service.
At Stathakis, we are diligent in finding and hiring very good people. We have a clear understanding of the benefits of thoroughly screened and extensively trained cleaning personnel. We put time and effort upfront to save us time and money long-term and meet our customers’ high expectations. Likewise, we provide comprehensive training programs that concentrate on the precise needs of our customers. We have created and implemented a successful program we call Open Book Management to help our teams communicate and give each employee here at Stathakis a financial stake in our success. We provide ongoing training and opportunities to grow in addition to competitive wages, benefits, recognition and rewards.
With an industry average turnover rate of 200%, Stathakis commitment to great people is clear with turnover at 40%, far below the industry average. At Stathakis, we offer great value for your dollar, we have a competent and highly trained staff, our low turnover our finely tuned systems for making sure the job gets done every time means you can depend on us to keep your building clean and running smoothly.