To grow their profits, many cleaning contractors outsource cleaning work to subcontractors. But how does this impact you, the customer.
To grow their profits, many cleaning contractors outsource cleaning work to subcontractors. The benefits for the cleaning contractor are many. Including making more money per client, it also can help them win more customers by submitting lower bids. This is because the cleaning contractor no longer has to be responsible for employment taxes, worker’s compensation, and other expenses. So the cleaning contractor can benefit.
But does subcontracting benefit – or not benefit – building owners and managers? Let’s take a look.
Training
Most cleaning contractors that hire employees to perform cleaning work take the time to train them, send them to seminars and classes to learn the most modern and effective cleaning techniques, and even have them certified by leading organizations in the professional cleaning industry.
Contractors that outsource their work invariably provide no-training. Too often, the cleaning contractor asks the subcontractor if they have cleaned facilities before and if so, for how long. If they say they have and have been doing so for the past year, they’re hired. Training and education not a topic that even comes up.
Effective
While hiring a cleaning contractor that can submit a lower bid is undoubtedly enticing, building owners and managers need to take a closer look at what this means to the subcontractors performing the work. Invariably it means they are paid very little – in some cases, less than minimum wage – to clean your facility. For the subcontractor to make it work, they have no choice but to cut corners. Less service here, less service there, and before you know it, you have a building that is not only not cleaned effectively, but may become unhealthy for building users.
Passing the Buck
Very often, the key concern of the cleaning contractor in these scenarios is to win new clients. Servicing the client and making sure they are receiving the quality of service they are expecting and signed up for is passed on to the subcontractor. So, when problems arise, as they invariably do, who’s in charge? Should you call the cleaning contractor, the person you first worked with? Is the subcontractor your point of contact? With little interest from the original cleaning contractor, you are often forced to work with someone you have never met before. This rarely makes for a healthy business relationship or a healthy building for that matter.
Liability
The cleaning contractor may have the necessary liability insurance to be in business. This protects them. But, does the subcontractor have liability insurance? In many cases, it is the subcontractor performing the cleaning work that is responsible if there is damage to the facility or someone is hurt in your facility due to their work. If they do not have liability insurance, the burden – and the costs – may fall on your lap.
We are here to help building managers keep their facilities cleaner, healthier, greener, and safer, in the most cost-effective ways possible. To learn more about Secure Clean, contact us at 888-609-1410.
