High employee turnover is running rampant across the service industries right now. We’ve all seen the “Help Wanted” and “Urgently Hiring” signs taped onto the windows of restaurants and stores. If your cleaning company is struggling with the same problem, it won’t be long till those side effects trickle down to you, the customer.
Here are a few symptoms for you to watch out for:
Lots of New Faces: If your workday overlaps with your cleaning crew’s, you’ll probably recognize when new people have joined the team. You may also notice difficulty getting in touch with your usual point of contact, emails going unanswered, and new signatures signing off on those quality checks.
Poor or Declining Quality: With high turnover, your commercial cleaning company will be rushing to fill those positions. They may be forced to take whoever they can get, experienced or not. They may also shorten or expedite training, all of which will impact the quality of service they’re providing.
Taking Longer or Being Behind Schedule: If your cleaner is trying to maintain the same standards despite their staffing shortage, it will inevitably take them longer to do the same amount of work. This isn’t sustainable long-term, and eventually, you may notice the crew showing up late, pushing back your cleaning, or worst case, having them cancel on you entirely.
Administrative Issues: There’s a good chance that staffing issues won’t stop with the cleaning crews. Your vendor could also be short-staffed on the business side of things. Signs of this could be mistakes on invoices, incomplete checklists, unanswered emails, and more.
Lack of Safety Precautions: This is one of the most concerning items on this list. When workers are rushing and improperly trained, safety may take a backseat to complete the job as quickly as possible. This could put the cleaning crew and/or your employees at risk, neither of which is acceptable.
(Let’s hope you double-checked that they have insurance during the vetting process.)
If you have a good relationship with your commercial cleaning company and they’ve consistently provided great service in the past, you may choose to stick with them through this rough patch. On the other hand, if their service has been subpar, if they’re rude or defensive when you express your concerns, or if you’ve observed serious safety infractions, it’s time to seek another vendor.