WHAT ARE THE TASKS CAN YOU EXPECT YOUR DOMESTIC PRIVATE STAFF TO DO AND WHAT NOT :
Have you ever felt difficulty in doing your household work during your busy schedule? Do you need help managing your household chores? Here is an idea. You can employ domestic private staff. A domestic private housekeeper has many responsibilities so you have to hire your housekeeper wisely. How to employ a housekeeper? How to manage your housekeeper? Don’t get confused. Here are some top tips to employ a housekeeper and manage your housekeeper.
WHAT IS HOUSEKEEPING?
Housekeeping is the maintenance of the household work either by the members of the family or by domestic private staff, the person hired by them.
WHO IS A DOMESTIC PRIVATE STAFF?
A domestic private housekeeper is a person hired to manage the household chores like cleaning, laundry, dishwashing, floor cleaning, and gardening. Sometimes a domestic private staff helps in cooking. The domestic private staff is paid for the work done by him/her. Please visit https://childcarehelp.co.uk/ for our service details.
10 REASONS TO HIRE A HOUSEKEEPER:
You may have a busy home.
You have long working hours.
You may be allergic to dust.
You have a new baby.
You travel often.
You need help watching your pets and children.
You don’t like cleaning.
You may have regular guests.
You have to support older people.
You may not be good at cleaning.
WHAT IS THE BENEFIT OF HIRING A DOMESTIC PRIVATE HOUSEKEEPER?
Hiring a domestic private housekeeper will be a benefit in spending your valuable time on what’s important. The domestic private staff can be the solution to balance your work and busy life. You can spend more time with your family and friends or more time relaxing.
TYPES OF HOUSEKEEPERS:
There are two types of housekeepers
Domestic
Institutional
A domestic housekeeper is the one who maintains bedrooms, kitchen, dining, receiving areas, garden, and the surrounding area of the house or residential buildings.
An institutional housekeeper is the one who maintains commercial lodging buildings like hotels and resorts.
Make sure to check your housekeeper is insured or bonded irrespective of the type of work they do.
Why are bonds and insurance necessary?
It is important to have a bond if the domestic private housekeeper damages or breaks anything in your house meanwhile insured housekeepers will cover if they get hurt while on their job.
What does insured mean?
Insurance covers the injury or damage that occurs during the house cleaning. It gives you financial protection from the housekeeper cleaning companies. If the company is not insured, you have to pay and bear the responsibility for the accident caused while cleaning the house. If you choose an insured company, they will take the responsibility. Any file claimed will be against the company, not on you.
What does bonded mean?
If the cleaning company doesn’t work as promised, doesn’t deliver as per the contract, or steals something from your house, you can collect money if it is bonded. You have the right to file a complaint against the company if any of the above cases occur. The bond company will investigate and claim you the compensation. If the company hired by you is not bonded, you cannot claim compensation. You have to directly visit the company. In some worst cases, the unbonded companies refuse to hear your complaint and refund for payment or replace the stolen things from your house. Please visit https://childcarehelp.co.uk/ for more details.
DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES OF A DOMESTIC PRIVATE HOUSEKEEPER:
A domestic private staff has to keep the areas clean and neat.
Sweeping the floor of the house.
Mopping the house.
Dusting the shelves.
Cleaning the windows.
Pet care.
Emptying trash cans.
Notify any damages.
Some housekeepers do laundry.
A housekeeper has to maintain all the housekeeping equipment.
REQUIREMENTS OF A DOMESTIC PRIVATE HOUSEKEEPER:
A domestic private housekeeper should have the ability to maintain things.
Domestic private staff should have time management skills.
Ability to work quickly.
Ability to adapt to the working area.
Handle basic maintenance and cleaning.
A domestic private housekeeper should have organizational skills.
HOW TO MANAGE YOUR DOMESTIC PRIVATE HOUSEKEEPER:
The basic thing is to treat someone the same way you wanted to be treated. Respect is the key that keeps the relationship strong between the house owner and the domestic private staff. You should treat the domestic private housekeeper in a good manner. Housekeepers are paid for their service and require respect. There are certain ways to manage your domestic private staff.
Make sure you do the payment on time without any delay
Be generous with the pay and salary
Create a schedule for time management and clear your expectations to the domestic private housekeeper about managing the property
Talk and connect with the domestic private staff, and ask about their family and social activities. It shows you take care of them.
Always be polite, say please and thank you
THINGS YOU SHOULD NOT DO:
1.Don’t urge yourself to hire a domestic private staff for your house. Choose the right domestic private housekeeper. Take some time to recruit, interview, and go for a trial period before you hire a housekeeper
2.Don’t speak rudely. You might be not at good mood always and your domestic private housekeeper is in your home, don’t show your anger towards them
3.Your domestic private housekeeper deserves the respect regardless of full-time worker or a live-in housekeeper. You should not be rude to them.
4.Domestic private staff need time to have their own life and breaks. You should not force them to work upon unrealistic expectations
5.Don’t judge your domestic private staff by their appearance. An apple looking good from the outside may be rotten inside. Appearance is not everything.
6.Give a warning if you are going to stop hiring your domestic private housekeeper.
7.Be reasonable. Don’t ask your domestic private staff to do additional work like sewing your buttons, or cleaning your vehicle. Make clear the work schedule and discuss it with your housekeeper during the interview.
8.Make sure that you provide all equipment for cleaning. Your domestic private housekeeper may be allergic to certain chemicals. Have a discussion about the chemicals and equipment with your domestic private staff.
RIGHTS OF A DOMESTIC PRIVATE STAFF:
A domestic private housekeeper working in the UK has the following rights. The employer must
1.Give holiday pay as agreed
2.Not force the domestic private staff to work excessive hours
3.Not work more than 48 hours a week
4.Have rest breaks
5.A wage statement or payslip
6.Safe and healthy working conditions
7.Pay the agreed rate, at least the employer should pay the national minimum wage
8.Give notice to the domestic private staff if the employment ends
9.Return to work after maternity or paternity holidays
10.A domestic private housekeeper can have a copy of the agreement with the employer regarding the employment conditions
11.The agreement can be changed by the employer only if the domestic private staff agrees.
12.The domestic private staff can take legal actions against the employer through an employment or industrial tribunal or the civil courts if the employer fails to meet any of these requirements
Things you can expect a domestic private housekeeper to do:
Domestic private housekeepers should ensure the house is always clean and neat and is ready to welcome family and guests. Make your expectations clear from the outset and discuss with your domestic private housekeeper what their duties include.
Here is a list of duties you can expect your domestic housekeeper to do:
Dusting the house
Vacuuming the floor
Mopping the floors
Laundry
Ironing
Wardrobe management
House management and organization
Daily cleaning and deep cleaning
Pet care
Light cooking
Light gardening
Polishing brass, silver and looking after antiques
Packing and unpacking
Checking the stocks
Cleaning the microwave oven, refrigerator, and other appliances
Cleaning the windows
Watering the plants in the garden
Any other reasonable tasks associated with their role
Duties you should not expect your domestic private staff to do
There are things that you cannot reasonably expect your domestic private staff to do.
If your children are school-aged, you may choose a domestic private housekeeper and a nanny in one with your housekeeper also doing childcare. Your housekeeper can do most of the housekeeping duties during the day while the kids are at school. You should not expect all the domestic private housekeepers to look after your kids. Please visit https://childcarehelp.co.uk/ for more details.
List of things you should never expect your housekeeper to do:
Heavy lifting: This can be dangerous and can cause unnecessary strain on your domestic private staff. If any such work is to be done, make sure it is done properly and does not put your domestic private housekeeper in danger.
Climbing ladders is a risk you should not expect your domestic private staff to do. If you need to clean the windows outside, make a call to a professional window cleaner.
The same goes for climbing ladders and working at height. Don’t put your domestic private staff in danger of falling.
Cleaning up human or pet feces is not a part of a domestic private housekeeper’s job so don’t expect it from them. Feces may cause disease and your housekeeper’s health is very important.
Personal care should be carried out by a trained and qualified carer and you should not expect your domestic private staff to do so.
Driving: you should not expect your domestic private staff to drive your car as it is not their duty. You can hire a driver for your needs.
Car washing: Make sure not to expect your domestic private staff to wash your car as it is not their duty.
Illegal activities: You should not expect your domestic private staff to break the law, even if they are working in your house, and even if you make your own choices to break the law. You should be aware of the laws applied to you and your domestic private housekeeper, wherever you are.
OVERSEAS DOMESTIC PRIVATE STAFF:
Many domestic workers from different countries work in the UK by entering the UK with an “Overseas Domestic Worker Visa”. This visa requires the domestic workers to be employed for at least a year by the employer before entering the UK. They help their employers to cook, clean, and care for their children and pets.
Some other domestic workers entered the UK as refugees or through spouse visas. The reason why they work abroad is to send their children to school and to support elderly parents. As the primary reason for overseas domestic workers is to provide their families with financial help, they spend most of their wages on their families.
RIGHTS OF OVERSEAS DOMESTIC PRIVATE HOUSEKEEPER:
Like domestic private staff, overseas domestic private housekeepers have their rights. The rights of overseas domestic private housekeepers include the following
Paid at least with national minimum wage
Can take paid leave
Break during the working day
Limitation of working time to 48 hours per week
Limitation of night work to 8 hours for every 24 hours
Provide adequate work breaks
Healthy and safe working conditions
Claim against the employer if the requirements are not met
According to the draft bill on modern slavery, offenses dealing with forced labor and slavery, maximum sentence offenses from 14 years to life imprisonment.
THINGS TO KEEP IN MIND BY AN EMPLOYER:
An employer must keep certain things in mind while hiring domestic private staff. The employer must not do the following
Pay fees lesser than the agreed amount to the housekeeper
Force to work against the bill
Fail to pay for the extra work done by the housekeeper
Excessive or unfair reduction in the pay for transport or uniform
Allowing the domestic private housekeeper to be threatened or harassed
Put at the risk of injury or ill-health to the housekeeper through the work
Dismissing the domestic private staff unfairly
Ignoring the complaints of domestic private housekeepers about poor treatment
Treating badly for concerns raised by the domestic private staff. Please visit https://childcarehelp.co.uk/ for more details.
