How to hire a janitor/housekeeper

How to hire a janitor/housekeeper, step by step

Here's a step-by-step janitor/housekeeper hiring guide:

• Step 1: Identify your hiring needs
• Step 2: Create an ideal candidate profile
• Step 3: Make a budget
• Step 4: Write a janitor/housekeeper job description
• Step 5: Post your job
• Step 6: Interview candidates
• Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new janitor/housekeeper
• Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   Before you start hiring a janitor/housekeeper, identify what type of worker you actually need. Certain positions might call for a full-time employee, while others can be done by a part-time worker or contractor.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

   Is the person you're thinking of hiring a US citizen or green card holder?

   Yes

   No

   You should also consider the ideal background you'd like them a janitor/housekeeper to have before you start to hire. For example, what industry or field would you like them to have experience in, what level of seniority or education does the job require, and how much it'll cost to hire a janitor/housekeeper that fits the bill.

   The following list breaks down different types of janitor/housekeepers and their corresponding salaries.

   Type of Janitor/Housekeeper	Description	Hourly rate
   Janitor/Housekeeper	Janitors and building cleaners keep many types of buildings clean, orderly, and in good condition.	$9-16
   Custodian	A custodian, also referred to as janitor, is responsible for maintaining cleanliness and helping protect all facilities. Custodians make sure everything is clean, neat, in order, and free from clutter and safe... Show more	$11-18
   General Cleaner	General cleaners are responsible for maintaining the cleanliness and orderliness of all the facilities of the company premises. A general cleaner also monitors the adequacy of cleaning materials in the storage area... Show more	$10-16

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Clean Rooms
   • Cleanliness
   • Patient Rooms
   • Paper Towels
   • Office Buildings
   • Glass Partitions
   • Clean Restrooms
   • Laundry Room
   • Wet Mops
   • Urinals
   • Shampoo Carpets
   • Squeegees
   • Polish Furniture
   • Mop Floors

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Perform specialty floor care; stripping/waxing floors, carpet extracting.Safely operate auto scrubbers, carpet extractors, floor burnishers.
   • Maintain cleanliness of public areas including front of building, restrooms, front desk area and elevators.
   • Maintain building cleanliness internal and external
   • Maintain working facilities-use floor scrubbers to clean assign areas-Polished floors-cleane bathrooms and take out garbage to maintain a clean environment
   • Disinfect equipment and supplies using steam operate sterilizers and germicides.

   More janitor/housekeeper duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in your janitor/housekeeper job description is a great way to entice the best and brightest candidates. A janitor/housekeeper salary can vary based on several factors:

   • Location. For example, janitor/housekeepers' average salary in louisiana is 52% less than in massachusetts.
   • Seniority. Entry-level janitor/housekeepers earn 43% less than senior-level janitor/housekeepers.
   • Certifications. A janitor/housekeeper with a few certifications under their belt will likely demand a higher salary.
   • Company. Working for a prestigious company or an exciting start-up can make a huge difference in a janitor/housekeeper's salary.

   Average janitor/housekeeper salary

   $13.03hourly

   $27,103 yearly

   ---

   Entry-level janitor/housekeeper salary

   $20,000 yearly salary

   Updated January 2, 2026

   Average janitor/housekeeper salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	Massachusetts	$36,302	$17
   2	California	$33,591	$16
   3	Minnesota	$33,366	$16
   4	Washington	$31,966	$15
   5	Pennsylvania	$31,323	$15
   6	New Hampshire	$30,834	$15
   7	Wisconsin	$29,354	$14
   8	Iowa	$27,858	$13
   9	Illinois	$27,825	$13
   10	Ohio	$26,464	$13
   11	Maryland	$25,087	$12
   12	Nebraska	$24,859	$12
   13	Arizona	$24,593	$12
   14	North Carolina	$23,326	$11
   15	Florida	$23,056	$11
   16	Oklahoma	$22,462	$11
   17	Missouri	$22,087	$11
   18	Texas	$22,085	$11
   19	Utah	$21,904	$11
   20	Idaho	$20,942	$10

   Average janitor/housekeeper salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	Estes Rockets	$33,402	$16.06
   2	Sycuan Casino Resort	$32,122	$15.44
   3	Emerald Downs	$31,925	$15.35
   4	Jordan's Furniture	$31,542	$15.16	2
   5	Erickson Senior Living	$31,136	$14.97	12
   6	1-800-Flowers.com	$31,016	$14.91
   7	Life Care Centers of America	$30,710	$14.76	42
   8	Learning Care Group	$29,866	$14.36	25
   9	Remedy Intelligent Staffing	$29,854	$14.35
   10	BCforward	$29,666	$14.26	4
   11	Benedictine Health System	$29,527	$14.20	15
   12	Cleveland Clinic	$29,297	$14.09	14
   13	Arthur Lawrence	$29,123	$14.00
   14	Essentia Health	$29,117	$14.00
   15	Dartmouth-Hitchcock	$29,117	$14.00
   16	Firstservice Residential California, Inc.	$28,947	$13.92
   17	San Miguel School	$28,613	$13.76
   18	Sanford Health	$28,441	$13.67	46
   19	Sonoma Valley Community Health Center	$28,431	$13.67
   20	Country Villa Service Corp.	$28,317	$13.61

4. Writing a janitor/housekeeper job description

   A janitor/housekeeper job description should include a summary of the role, required skills, and a list of responsibilities. It's also good to include a salary range and the first name of the hiring manager. Below, you can find an example of a janitor/housekeeper job description:

   Janitor/housekeeper job description example

   Exceptional care is a team effort. Even if you've never considered healthcare as a next step, you'll find there are many paths to creating a career at Cleveland Clinic centered on what matters most to you.
   
   Our Environmental Services Department is consistently among the highest performing Environmental Services teams in healthcare, and we're looking to add an Environmental Services Floor Technicians and Area Cleaner to our team to create a comfortable and safe environment our patients have come to expect.
   
   Area Cleaner: This position is responsible for the cleaning and disinfecting of patient rooms, restrooms, and various common areas assigned to your unit. Other duties include timely completion of discharge and other assorted cleaning requests, establishing rapport with patients, and working alongside fellow caregivers from other departments.
   
   Floor Technician: This position is responsible for the floor care on assigned unit, including dusting, mopping, and buffing of hallways, patient rooms, and various common areas on assigned units. Other duties include timely completion of associated discharge cleaning, cleaning and disinfecting areas as requested, curtain hanging, UV, establishing rapport with patients, and working alongside fellow caregivers from other departments. .
   
   The ideal candidate is comfortable working independently, responsive to changing and pressing requests, proactive in identifying and attending to needs of assigned area, communicates well with others, comfortable working as part of a team, and empathetic towards patients, visitors, and caregivers.
   
   Opportunities to interact and make a positive impact on patients, visitors, and caregivers, and significant opportunities for vertical growth within a large department (Team Lead, Supervisor, Manager), are just a few reasons this role would matter most to the right candidate.
   Available Shifts:
   1st: 7:00am - 3:30pm
   
   2nd shift Base Pay plus shift differential
   - 2:00pm - 10:30pm
   - 3:00pm - 11:30pm
   - 4:00pm - 12:30am
   
   3rd shift Base Pay plus shift differential
   - 11:00pm - 7:30am
   
   Must be available Monday-Friday and work every other holiday and weekends:
   All shifts require availability to work every other weekend. A weekend includes working Saturday and Sunday together. When scheduled a weekend you would have 2 days off during the week.
   
   Cleveland Clinic invests in our caregivers, technologies, and processes because working together is how we all learn and grow. Join us, and you'll experience the difference of a culture where opportunities to advance and the support to get there go hand in hand. Full benefits that start on the first day of hire (medical is a zero deductible plan/ dental / vision) Generous paid time off that can be rolled over year over year Responsibilities: Cleans patient rooms, ancillary areas, exam rooms, offices, waiting areas, public restrooms, discharge rooms and other assigned areas. Stocks paper items and other supplies in patient rooms, exam rooms and restroom as necessary. Follows scripting, policies and procedures on patient isolation and all Environmental Services technical and procedural standard operating procedures. Follows and adheres to all hospital wide and departmental safety requirements. Other duties as assigned. Education: High School Diploma/General Educational Development (GED) preferred. Certifications: None required. Complexity of Work: Requires attention to detail, ability to follow directions and the ability to work with minimal supervision. Must be able to work in a stressful environment. Work Experience: Requires one to three months on-the-job training to learn departmental policies and procedures, various cleaning techniques, proper use and storage of cleaning agents and chemicals. Physical Requirements: Requires full body motion, including ability to perform work while lifting, bending, stooping, crouching, squatting and reaching. Requires continuous walking and standing on hard surfaces. Requires regular handling and use of disinfectants and other cleaning agents and chemicals. Light Work - Exerting 11 to 20 pounds of force occasionally, and/or greater than negligible up to 10 pounds of force constantly to move objects. Personal Protective Equipment: Follows standard precautions using personal protective equipment as required. Keywords: floor scrubbers, high speed burnishes, carpet extractors, buffers, vacuum machine, porter, waxing, stripping, customer service, floor care, buff, scrubbing, janitor, custodian, custodial, housekeeper, housekeeping, sanitizing, customer service, dusting, mopping, cleaning, cleaner, maid, maintenance, groundskeeper, laborer, room attendant

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   To find the right janitor/housekeeper for your business, consider trying out a few different recruiting strategies:

   • Consider internal talent. One of the most important sources of talent for any company is its existing workforce.
   • Ask for referrals. Reach out to friends, family members, and current employees and ask if they know or have worked with janitor/housekeepers they would recommend.
   • Recruit at local colleges. Attend job fairs at local colleges to recruit janitor/housekeepers who meet your education requirements.
   • Social media platforms. LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter now have more than 3.5 billion users, and you can use social media to reach potential job candidates.

   Post your job online:

   • Post your janitor/housekeeper job on Zippia to find and recruit janitor/housekeeper candidates who meet your exact specifications.
   • Use field-specific websites.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   To successfully recruit janitor/housekeepers, your first interview needs to engage with candidates to learn about their interest in the role and experience in the field. You can go into more detail about the company, the role, and the responsibilities during follow-up interviews.

   You should also ask about candidates' unique skills and talents to see if they match the ideal candidate profile you developed earlier. Candidates good enough for the next step can complete the technical interview.

   The right interview questions can help you assess a candidate's hard skills, behavioral intelligence, and soft skills.

7. Send a job offer and onboard your new janitor/housekeeper

   Once you've selected the best janitor/housekeeper candidate for the job, it's time to write an offer letter. In addition to salary, this letter should include details about the benefits and perks you offer the candidate. Ensuring that your offer is competitive is essential, as qualified candidates may be considering other job opportunities. The candidate may wish to negotiate the terms of the offer, and you should be open to discussion. After you reach an agreement, the final step is formalizing the agreement with a contract.

   You should also follow up with applicants who don't get the job with an email letting them know that you've filled the position.

   To prepare for the new employee's start date, you can create an onboarding schedule and complete any necessary paperwork, such as employee action forms and onboarding documents like I-9 forms, benefits enrollment, and federal and state tax forms. Human Resources should also ensure that a new employee file is created.

8. Go through the hiring process checklist

   • Determine employee type (full-time, part-time, contractor, etc.)
   • Submit a job requisition form to the HR department
   • Define job responsibilities and requirements
   • Establish budget and timeline
   • Determine hiring decision makers for the role
   • Write job description
   • Post job on job boards, company website, etc.
   • Promote the job internally
   • Process applications through applicant tracking system
   • Review resumes and cover letters
   • Shortlist candidates for screening
   • Hold phone/virtual interview screening with first round of candidates
   • Conduct in-person interviews with top candidates from first round
   • Score candidates based on weighted criteria (e.g., experience, education, background, cultural fit, skill set, etc.)
   • Conduct background checks on top candidates
   • Check references of top candidates
   • Consult with HR and hiring decision makers on job offer specifics
   • Extend offer to top candidate(s)
   • Receive formal job offer acceptance and signed employment contract
   • Inform other candidates that the position has been filled
   • Set and communicate onboarding schedule to new hire(s)
   • Complete new hire paperwork (i9, benefits enrollment, tax forms, etc.)

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