What does a custodian/substitute custodian do?

A custodian is primarily responsible for maintaining the cleanliness of a particular area, including preparing and setting-up equipment for public or private use. Although their duties depend on their area of assignment or industry of employment, those duties often include conducting routine maintenance checks on facilities, performing basic repairs, cleaning floors and windows, replacing fixtures, monitoring supply inventories, and ordering new supplies as necessary.
Custodian/substitute custodian responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real custodian/substitute custodian resumes:
- Clean all areas of the school by emptying trash, sweeping, mopping, scrubbing bathroom fixtures and using floor scrubbers.
- Light grounds keeping including mowing, trimming, and pruning.
- Job duties include all aspects of custodial work, electrical and plumbing.
- Clean all bathrooms including disinfecting stalls, urinals, toilets, and sinks.
- Perform basic maintenance of furniture, playground equipment, plumbing and electrical as needed.
- Perform grounds maintenance tasks, such as removing snow, weed whacking and mowing the lawn.
- Maintain cleanliness of all interior and exterior school property to ensure safe and healthy environment for students and staff.
- Operate power equipment such as auto scrubbers, carpet extractors, pressure washer, hand and power tools and campus vehicles.
- Sanitize washbasins, urinals and toilets, clean mirrors, resupply dispensers, empty trash containers, sweep and mop lavatories.
- Operate and utilize custodial equipment to maintain facility cleanliness and sanitation of assign building areas.
- Train new employees about personal protection equipment and OSHA regulations.
- Have knowledge to operate all machinery in the building under OSHA standards.
- Organize weekly MSDS review and training with janitorial staff.
- Monitor and respond to fire, safety and HVAC system alarms after hours.
Custodian/substitute custodian skills and personality traits
We calculated that 8% of Custodians/Substitute Custodians are proficient in Ladders, Hallways, and Minor Maintenance. They’re also known for soft skills such as Interpersonal skills, Mechanical skills, and Physical strength.
We break down the percentage of Custodians/Substitute Custodians that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Ladders, 8%
Set up, arranged and removed decorations, tables, chairs, ladders and scaffolding to prepare facilities for large events.
- Hallways, 7%
Cleaned hallways of the assigned classrooms at Canton elementary school, along with cleaning of floors, restrooms, and cafeteria
- Minor Maintenance, 7%
General cleaning and minor maintenance of designated campuses
- Cleanliness, 6%
Operate and utilize custodial equipment to maintain facility cleanliness and sanitation of assigned building areas.
- Hand Tools, 5%
Operate equipment such as snow blowers, floor waxers, various hand tools, and drives company truck and vehicles.
- General Maintenance, 4%
Opened and secured buildings; performed general maintenance; set up for special functions; cleaned all area of schools.
Common skills that a custodian/substitute custodian uses to do their job include "ladders," "hallways," and "minor maintenance." You can find details on the most important custodian/substitute custodian responsibilities below.
Interpersonal skills. One of the key soft skills for a custodian/substitute custodian to have is interpersonal skills. You can see how this relates to what custodians/substitute custodians do because "janitors and building cleaners must interact well other cleaners and the people who live or work in the buildings they service." Additionally, a custodian/substitute custodian resume shows how custodians/substitute custodians use interpersonal skills: "general maintenance of grounds other routine maintenance duties as assigned skills used good communication and interpersonal skills. "
Mechanical skills. Another soft skill that's essential for fulfilling custodian/substitute custodian duties is mechanical skills. The role rewards competence in this skill because "janitors and building cleaners need to understand general building operations and should be able to make routine repairs, such as to leaky faucets." According to a custodian/substitute custodian resume, here's how custodians/substitute custodians can utilize mechanical skills in their job responsibilities: "performed mechanical repairs and services to plumbing, electrical, mechanical systems and large rotating equipment including refrigeration systems. "
Physical strength. This is an important skill for custodians/substitute custodians to perform their duties. For an example of how custodian/substitute custodian responsibilities depend on this skill, consider that "janitors and building cleaners often must lift and move heavy cleaning materials and equipment." This excerpt from a resume also shows how vital it is to everyday roles and responsibilities of a custodian/substitute custodian: "perform physically intensive and detailed custodial maintenance of cornell's academic facilities. ".
Time-management skills. A big part of what custodians/substitute custodians do relies on "time-management skills." You can see how essential it is to custodian/substitute custodian responsibilities because "janitors and building cleaners must plan and complete tasks in a timely manner." Here's an example of how this skill is used from a resume that represents typical custodian/substitute custodian tasks: "provide excellent customer service deliver cleaning services on time fill in for employees shifts when they are unavailable to work. "
The three companies that hire the most custodian/substitute custodians are:
- The SOS Group
10 custodians/substitute custodians jobs
- Kelly Services8 custodians/substitute custodians jobs
- Black Hills Special Services Cooperative2 custodians/substitute custodians jobs
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Custodian/substitute custodian vs. Floor staff
The duties of floor staff depend on their line of work or industry of employment. In restaurants and similar establishments, floor staff is in charge of performing support tasks for the wait staff. They typically serve food to patrons, clean and set tables, help in processing payments, monitor the supplies, and maintain the cleanliness of different areas. They may also assist customers by escorting them to their tables, answering inquiries, and delivering their bills. Furthermore, should there be any problems, the floor staff must report to the manager right away.
There are some key differences in the responsibilities of each position. For example, custodian/substitute custodian responsibilities require skills like "ladders," "hallways," "minor maintenance," and "hand tools." Meanwhile a typical floor staff has skills in areas such as "pos," "phone calls," "math," and "emergency situations." This difference in skills reveals the differences in what each career does.
Floor staff tend to reach similar levels of education than custodians/substitute custodians. In fact, floor staff are 0.7% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.1% more likely to have a Doctoral Degree.Custodian/substitute custodian vs. Janitor
Janitors are primarily responsible for maintaining the sanitation and cleanliness of the workspace. They are in charge of sweeping and mopping floors, wiping surfaces, and ensuring that the area they are assigned to is properly sanitized. They manage the inventory of supplies and ensure that they would never run out of cleaning supplies by properly tracking the usage of each material. Some skilled janitors are also responsible for doing minor repairs to different office equipment and fixtures. They also help in company event setups and cleanups, as well as in liaising tasks that the office might need.
While some skills are similar in these professions, other skills aren't so similar. For example, resumes show us that custodian/substitute custodian responsibilities requires skills like "ladders," "hallways," "minor maintenance," and "hand tools." But a janitor might use other skills in their typical duties, such as, "patients," "window sills," "commercial cleaning," and "customer service."
On average, janitors earn a lower salary than custodians/substitute custodians. Some industries support higher salaries in each profession. Interestingly enough, janitors earn the most pay in the hospitality industry with an average salary of $30,059. Whereas custodians/substitute custodians have higher pay in the education industry, with an average salary of $31,734.Average education levels between the two professions vary. Janitors tend to reach similar levels of education than custodians/substitute custodians. In fact, they're 0.5% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.1% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Custodian/substitute custodian vs. Floor care specialist
A floor care specialist is in charge of the maintenance of floors in public or private establishments. They typically ensure the cleanliness of floors by sweeping, dry and wet mopping, disinfecting areas, extracting or sanitizing carpets, vacuuming, and scrubbing bathroom floors. They may also participate in installing or refinishing floor tiles, preparing facilities, and re-arranging furniture. Moreover, a floor care specialist must maintain the cleanliness of floors while maintaining an active communication line with co-workers and managers for a smooth and efficient workflow.
Some important key differences between the two careers include a few of the skills necessary to fulfill the responsibilities of each. Some examples from custodian/substitute custodian resumes include skills like "ladders," "hallways," "minor maintenance," and "hand tools," whereas a floor care specialist is more likely to list skills in "patients," "home health," "floor care," and "rehabilitation. "
Floor care specialists earn the best pay in the manufacturing industry, where they command an average salary of $34,345. Custodians/substitute custodians earn the highest pay from the education industry, with an average salary of $31,734.When it comes to education, floor care specialists tend to earn higher degree levels compared to custodians/substitute custodians. In fact, they're 5.6% more likely to earn a Master's Degree, and 0.4% more likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.Custodian/substitute custodian vs. Day porter
Day porters are skilled employees who are responsible for conducting daily building maintenance at a facility to ensure it looks neat and presentable to the public. These porters are required to clean all common room areas such as the kitchen, cafeteria, and lobby as well as prepare conference rooms before and after meetings. They must complete minor repairs and place safety hazard signs in the building to warn customers and employees. Day porters must also provide service washrooms while responding to major spills or other cleaning crises.
Types of custodian/substitute custodian
Updated January 8, 2025











