The cleaning industry had a dip during the recession, and many firms reduced their use of cleaning services. However, as the U.S. economy sees a steady improvement in previous years the industrial and commercial cleaning industry has started recovering. With the industry’s steady growth combined with the sudden boost of people’s interest in cleanliness and hygiene due to the recent COVID outbreak, it opened new opportunities for businesses in the cleaning industry. As stated in a report made by Grandview Research, the global commercial cleaning market might reach $468.2B in revenue by 2027. With this growth and opportunities, challenges are sure to pop up eventually. In this article, we are focusing more on the challenges faced by janitorial services — staff.

Finding the right balance so that you have enough employees on your team but not too many that it puts a burden on your budget is one of the trickiest aspects of janitorial staffing. That appears to be rather straightforward at first glance. You make hires based on the number of workers and working hours required to finish the tasks on your roster. However, it’s not that simple. Employees call in sick, get injured, or are simply on a vacation. If this sounds familiar to you, then yes janitorial staffing challenges are just the same as any service-related industry challenges. 

5 Janitorial Challenges and Their Solutions

Challenge 1: High Turnover

High turnover is one of the most annoying problems that businesses have when it comes to janitorial staffing. It can be challenging to maintain the same standard of excellence in your cleaning services when staff members are regularly leaving and being replaced. As it takes time and money to find, hire, and educate new personnel, this issue can also be quite expensive.

Offering competitive compensation and benefits is one of the best methods to lower turnover among your janitorial staff. This entails providing additional benefits like paid time off, health insurance, and retirement plans in addition to fair compensation for the position. Employees are more likely to continue with your company for a prolonged period if they feel valued and appreciated.

Given this, there is a good probability you will need to raise your rates, and as a result, you might lose some contracts. Nevertheless, a lot of those contracts are with customers that will do anything to get the best deal possible. The outcomes speak for themselves in the work they produce when you have contented, higher-paid staff. Because they are aware of the caliber of the team and the superior level of service that will be offered, they will be eager to pay your charges.

Challenge 2: Difficulty Finding and Retaining Qualified Candidates

Finding and keeping qualified individuals is a typical problem in the hiring of janitors. Finding applicants with the ideal mix of training, abilities, and work ethic can be challenging, and it can be even harder to retain those workers once they have been employed. Hired staff might find things lacking in your company or they just don’t feel fulfilled with what they do, so they tend to leave. 

In order to address that, offering ongoing training and development opportunities will convince your staff to stay with your company since you would help them grow continuously. These can include things like internal training programs, professional development seminars, and industry certifications. You may enhance your employees’ abilities and knowledge while also demonstrating to them how much you respect their contributions to your business by making an investment in their growth and development.

Another janitorial solution for this is to not overwork your janitorial staff. Yes, there is a ton of demand in the market right now. However, that doesn’t mean that you should fill your schedule to the brim. Remember cleaning is tiresome and your staff needs hour-long breaks after every clean-up schedule. If your team is consistently overworked, they will leave no matter how great the pay and benefits are. You might as well take advantage of technology to lessen the burden on your staff. You might not know it, but there is various robotic cleaning equipment out there all you need is a little searching on the internet.

Challenge 3: Safety Concerns

Working as a janitor can frequently be physically taxing, and it can also expose workers to risky situations. It’s crucial to think about the safety of your staff when using cleaning products, and chemicals, or doing back-bending heavy lifting. Ensure the security and safety of the cleaning crews as well as the areas being cleaned. 

Commercial cleaning providers frequently operate after hours or in remote locations, which can add another layer of safety issues to take into account. The more you can do to safeguard your staff and establish a safety procedure to follow, the more secure they will feel working in the field.

You can also provide proper training and safety equipment such as PPEs. Training on how to properly handle equipment and cleaning chemicals will save you a ton of money and effort. Establishing clear policies for handling emergencies and accidents is also a must. You can not only protect your cleaning workers by making safety investments, but you can also lower your company’s risk of liability and other potential legal problems.

Challenge 4: Lack of Communication

Any team needs good communication, but cleaning personnel requires it more than any other group. Poor communication can result in misunderstandings, errors, and a lack of accountability.

Setting up clear lines of communication and expectations for your janitorial personnel is crucial for addressing this difficulty. This entails establishing regular check-ins, offering precise task instructions, and developing a procedure for reporting problems or issues. You may avoid misunderstandings and enhance team performance by making it simple for employees to communicate with management and one another.

Challenge 5: Lack of Motivation

When you do something repeatedly it tends to become boring making people unmotivated. The same happens with janitorial staffing, cleaning all day every day. Unmotivated employees can result in a drop in productivity and a rise in absenteeism. This is a typical issue in the janitorial sector, as the work may not necessarily be viewed as “glamorous” and may be physically taxing.

It’s crucial to appreciate and honor effort if you want to keep your janitorial staff motivated. This can take the form of rewarding workers for a job well done, providing them bonuses or incentives for reaching goals, or presenting them with an employee of the month honor. You may improve morale and maintain staff motivation by expressing your gratitude for their hard work.

Due to a number of important factors, businesses may find it difficult to hire janitors. Ranging from low motivation to high turnover rates. Despite the fact that dealing with staff challenges can be challenging, you don’t have to let your team or yourself suffer as a result. You can create a dependable and diligent workforce that endures with a little more time and attention.

If you need help and you’re near Litchfield County, Connecticut then feel free to contact us!