The Cleaning Industry: An Overview

The light-duty cleaning industry is one that is growing, both in Canada and around the world. People who work in this industry help to fill the demand for services in the home, as well as in businesses, and contribute to filling the demand for contract cleaners, which businesses use to save money on personnel costs. Additionally, private homes use cleaning services to conduct housekeeping chores that a dual-income family may not have time to do themselves.

Light duty cleaners are normally responsible for cleaning areas such as lobbies, hallways, offices, private residences and other buildings such as hospitals or schools. Between 1991 and 2011, the number of people who were employed as light duty cleaners increased dramatically. Many businesses sought to reduce costs by contracting out cleaning work to other companies, allowing them to pay lower hourly wages, while reducing the number of necessary employees.

The Clean Facts

The National Household Survey found that light duty cleaners were employed primarily in the following types of industries:

Janitorial and cleaning services accounted for 39% of those employed
23% worked in health care and social assistance
Accommodation services held 12% of light duty cleaners

Along with janitorial services, franchises in the cleaning industry also provide upholstery cleaning, dry cleaning and laundry services. Of the $40 billion generated in 2010, in the United States, however, roughly 90% of the revenue came from cleaning companies, with the other 10% from carpet and upholstery services. Since 2010, the business has continued to grow, with revenue estimated to reach $175 billion in the next few years.

With so much revenue being generated, it may be surprising to learn that cleaning company franchises only account for 10% of the total revenue. The rest is generated by individual or local businesses. In fact, 2010 statistics indicated there was an estimated 50,000 cleaning services in the United States alone, the vast majority being individually owned and operated.

Causes for Concern

The type of work required by the cleaning industry means that most, if not all employees of a cleaning service do not report to an office in order to begin or end their shifts. Employee wages are based on timesheets that are self-completed by the employee themselves, and it is up to them to ensure that the hours of work are correct. Additionally, employers need to keep a close eye on the timesheets to ensure that employees are not working overtime, or are being paid correctly. Another possible concern is that employees do not arrive at the correct work location, causing dissatisfaction with the customers. In such a highly competitive industry, customer service is essential, and providing substandard service can be disastrous for a cleaning company.

With Punchitme, there is no need for employees to properly complete timesheets. All they need to do is open our app, click the simple interface to start their shift, and begin working. The hours of work, location information, start and end times and more are automatically calculated for both the employer and employee to see. Minimal training is needed to use our app, and everyone can rest assured that the work is taking place, and that it will be paid correctly.

Cleaning services can more easily manage their employees and payroll, ensuring that their business is running efficiently, and that clients are getting the quality of services they have come to expect.