The Dirty Side of Cleaning

When thinking about the worst jobs in the world, cleaning is certainly high on the list. It’s an industry for the brave-hearted and hard working. For this reason, cleaners around the world are a special bunch with stomachs of steel and very few complaints.

When I started in the industry over a decade ago, I was amazed at the resilience and work ethic of the people I met. Everyone is on an even-playing field because it’s hard to have a bigger ego than your colleagues when no one is above cleaning a toilet. 

If asked about the hardest aspect of the job, many have said that it’s not only the physical work but also the unappreciative aspect to the job. It can be a tough gig but I work hard to create a culture of appreciation and recognition within my team and to reward their efforts – in particular when dealing with the industry’s dirtiest little secrets!

I asked our team of cleaners their memories of the worst cleaning experience and as you can imagine, there are more than a few! Below are the top nine worst things our cleaning team has ever seen…

Warning: Not for the faint hearted.

1. Definitely the time I was cleaning an aircon filter and a cockroach jumped out on me – I think I cried in front of the client.
2. You’d be surprised at what most shopping centre toilets look like at 6am in the morning – number two’s never seem to make it in the toilet bowl.
3. I’ll never forget my first cleaning shift in a hotel when I spent the shift scraping condoms off the ceiling.
4.  A toilet bowl filled to the brim with vomit from a wedding party – I had to scoop it out for the plumber.
5. A clean up at a deceased estate of a hoarder. It was one of the worst houses I’ve ever seen, but really sad at the same time.
6. It’s amazing what drunken people do in nightclub toilets. One example was someone took a poo in the toilet brush holders… needless to say we brought new ones.
7. Not gross but when I worked in hospitality, we had a badly trashed room. The customers had thrown two sofas out the window and turned all the furniture upside down, including the fridge.
8. Maggots crawling out of bins. They make my skin crawl and just when you think you’ve got them all, there’s always one more!
9. I found a toenail in a bed once, like the whole nail.

It certainly confirms that some things are just better left to the professionals. Although it might make our stomachs turn at times, our clients need quick turnaround times to know that their properties are hygienically safe for all occupants and visitors. And we have the best team for the job – with brave hearts and sleeves rolled up ready to go!