Thinking about hiring a house cleaner? Here's what you should know first
- Judith Mendiolea Lelo de Larrea
- Apr 20
- 6 min read
House cleaners talk about expectations, wages, best practices for communication and what they wish clients knew
Originally published by The Telegram Jan 23, 2026
Nicole Chandler still remembers the pace.
Thirty minutes. Sometimes 35, if she was lucky.
That was the window she had to clean a hotel room — strip the beds, scrub the bathroom, vacuum, wipe surfaces — regardless of whether the room had been quietly slept in or the remnants of a party had been left behind.
“I have half an hour, 35 minutes to clean that entire room, and I’m doing it alone,” she said. “If it’s a party room with confetti and gum stuck everywhere, to clean that properly? Definitely more than an hour.”
Chandler has worked in cleaning for 15 years, starting as a teenager and later spending six years in hotel housekeeping. Today, she still cleans alongside other work and said most people hiring cleaners, whether hotels or homeowners, underestimate what the job involves.
“Most people that are hiring have zero experience, little to none, of cleaning,” she said. “They have no knowledge of it whatsoever.”
That gap between expectation and reality shows up everywhere: in timelines, in pay and in how the work is valued.
A job people rely on, but rarely see
Cleaning is often invisible labour. When it’s done well, it disappears.
“Every single business that you go into would not be functioning if they didn’t have a cleaner,” Chandler said. “But we’re undermined a lot, and we don’t have the acknowledgement.”
That invisibility extends beyond perception. According to Statistics Canada, unpaid domestic labour, including cleaning, would be worth hundreds of billions of dollars annually if it were counted in the formal economy, underscoring how essential — and yet undervalued — this kind of work remains.
In hotels, invisibility is paired with pressure. Chandler said cleaners are often expected to turn over 10 to 15 rooms a day, doing repetitive, physical work for minimum wage.
“You’re getting paid minimum wage, and you’re doing sometimes 10 to 15 rooms per day,” she said.
Over time, that takes a toll.
“I have tendonitis in both my shoulders and my wrists, and I’m 29 years old,” she said. “That’s even with stretching, yoga, fitness.”
Research supports those experiences. According to a study published in the journal Applied Ergonomics, cleaning workers face significantly higher rates of musculoskeletal injuries than many other occupations due to repetitive motion, lifting and awkward postures.
Gilberto López, an immigrant worker from Mexico, saw similar dynamics while working in seasonal housekeeping and maintenance at cottages near Cavendish, P.E.I., last summer. He was hired for housekeeping, but his role quickly expanded.
“They asked me about my experience, and I told them I had done housekeeping, but also maintenance,” López said. “What really mattered was that I had experience fixing things.”
Soon, he was doing electrical work, plumbing, carpentry and pool maintenance, tasks well beyond cleaning.
“If the position was housekeeping, then it should be housekeeping,” he said.
He did not necessarily see it as a problem, as he enjoys maintenance work and was happy to be earning a salary, but added: “If you’re doing plumbing or electrical work, you should be paid for that.”
Why pay shapes expectations
Both workers said that minimum wage does not reflect the labour involved in cleaning, or the risks.
“At $16.50 an hour, no, you can’t really live on that, especially if you have a family,” López said.
National labour data shows the gap between perception and reality. According to Statistics Canada’s Job Bank, the median hourly wage for cleaners in Canada is just under $20 an hour, with many workers earning closer to minimum wage, particularly in Atlantic Canada.
For Chandler, low pay does not just affect workers — it affects outcomes.
“Someone’s not going to apply their best efforts if they’re getting paid minimum wage,” she said. “You’re breaking your back, you’re rushing, and you’re still expected to meet very high standards.”
Asked what fair pay would look like, both gave similar answers.
“For housekeeping, I think the minimum should be at least $20 an hour,” López said. “You’re exposed to risks.”
He referred to colleagues he had known who contracted COVID-19 while providing cleaning services.
Chandler said a reasonable starting rate would be higher still.
“A reasonable rate for someone starting out in cleaning would be between $20 and $25 an hour,” she said.
Occupational health research suggests those risks are real. According to the International Labour Organization, domestic and cleaning workers face chemical exposure, ergonomic strain and elevated injury risk, often without the same health and safety protections as workers in more formal sectors.
For homeowners, that often means recalibrating expectations. Lower rates tend to come with shorter visits, rushed work and higher turnover.
Cleaning a home is different, and more personal
While hotels operate on speed and volume, cleaning private homes works differently. Chandler said that’s where trust and communication matter most.
“All of my clients came from word of mouth. Trust comes first,” she said.
Most of her long-term clients, some of whom she worked with for years, came through personal referrals. The relationship is slower to build, but more stable.
“They make me feel like, ‘Without you, I don’t know what I would do,’” she said. “It’s more personable.”
López agreed that trust is central, particularly when someone is given access to a home.
“When someone leaves you their house, it’s about trust,” he said. “Attitude and responsibility matter a lot.”
Both said clarity upfront can prevent problems later, especially when it comes to what is and is not included.
“There should be a written agreement that says what the job is, what the pay is, and what the expectations are,” Chandler said. “Not vague. Not under the table.”
Labour researchers have found that informal work arrangements are more likely to lead to disputes over scope and pay, particularly in domestic work, where expectations can quietly expand without compensation.
The difference between “looking clean” and being clean
One of the most common misconceptions, Chandler said, is confusing speed and scent with quality.
“Some places smell clean because they’re chemically infused,” she said. “But that doesn’t mean the details are done.”
Proper cleaning, she said, takes time, technique and equipment, things many workplaces don’t invest in.
“If you had the right tools, like steam cleaners, it would cut the work in half,” she said. “And it would save the cleaner’s body.”
López said even basic safety measures can be overlooked once the pace becomes routine.
“They gave us masks and gloves, and I used them,” he said. “You don’t know who stayed in the room before.”
Resetting expectations
Neither worker described cleaning as a bad job. Both said they took pride in their work.
“It’s not a bad job,” López said. “But it has to be treated like real work. It’s a lot in the attitude too.”
For homeowners looking to hire a cleaner, the message from both is consistent: fair pay, realistic timelines and clear communication do not just protect workers — they lead to better results.
“You can have a really clean place,” Chandler said. “But you can’t expect that if you’re only paying minimum wage and rushing people.”
In the end, the work that keeps homes, hotels and businesses running depends on something simple: recognizing that what looks effortless usually is not, and treating the people who do it accordingly.
What cleaners say makes a good client
If Chandler were running her own cleaning business, she said the difference between a stressful job and a good one would come down to a few key things, most of them within a homeowner’s control. They include:
Allow enough time: A good client understands that quality cleaning cannot always be rushed. First-time visits and deep cleans take longer, and heavily used spaces need more than a quick once-over. Allowing flexibility in timing sets everyone up for better results.
Pay fairly for the work: A reasonable starting rate for house cleaning is between $20 and $25 an hour. Paying minimum wage while expecting meticulous results often leads to frustration on both sides.
Be clear about what you want cleaned: Good clients spell out expectations upfront and understand the difference between regular cleaning and deep cleaning.
Respect boundaries: Cleaning does not include maintenance or repairs unless that is part of the agreement. Being clear about the job scope helps avoid misunderstandings and protects everyone involved.
Support trust and consistency: Trust builds when expectations are clear, communication is open and the relationship is not treated as disposable.
Remember, it is physical work: Cleaning is skilled, repetitive and physically demanding. Clients who acknowledge that by allowing realistic timelines and providing high-quality equipment tend to see better results.
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