Hiring cleaners for commercial contracts without wrecking your margin
Staffing decides whether a contract is profitable. Here is how to recruit, pay and supervise cleaners on commercial accounts.
Recruit before you need the person
The worst hiring decisions happen in the 72 hours after a contract is signed. Keep a rolling bench: a live advert, two or three vetted people you check in with monthly, and a part-time floater who can cover sickness. A bench of two costs you very little and prevents the panic hire that loses the account.
Pay above the local floor, deliberately
Paying 8-12% above the local cleaning wage typically cuts turnover in half. Turnover is the hidden cost that destroys margin: recruiting, training, keys, uniforms, supervision, and the client complaint that follows every new face. Price the contract so the higher wage is already funded.
Supervision is a line item, not an afterthought
Budget supervision hours into every bid — typically 8-12% of cleaning hours for multi-site work. An unsupervised site drifts within weeks. A supervised site produces the inspection reports that make renewal automatic.
Onboard in the first week or not at all
Site-specific induction, a printed scope checklist left on site, a named contact for problems, and a check-in on nights one, three and seven. Cleaners who complete their first week with clear expectations tend to stay for years; the ones who do not typically leave within a month.
Employee, subcontractor, or both
Employees give control and consistency; subcontractors give flexibility on periodic and project work. Most healthy operations run employees on recurring contracts and subcontract specialist work — carpet, high-level, post-construction — where equipment cost cannot be justified. Check local classification rules before choosing.
FAQs
What should I pay commercial cleaners?+
Benchmark the local rate then add 8-12%. The retention gain almost always outweighs the wage cost once you account for recruitment and complaint handling.
How many cleaners do I need per square foot?+
Work from production rate, not headcount. A general office at 3,500 sq ft per hour needs roughly one cleaner-hour per 3,500 sq ft per visit, plus supervision time.
Should I use subcontractors?+
For specialist and project work, yes. For recurring nightly contracts, employees give the consistency clients renew for.
How do I cover sickness?+
Keep a paid floater or cross-trained supervisor. Uncovered nights are the single most common trigger for a cancellation notice.
What checks do commercial clients expect?+
Right-to-work verification, references, and background checks for medical, childcare and education sites. Keep a training matrix ready for audits.