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Want a Clean Home With a Clean Conscience? Use New York’s New Living-Wage Cleaning Service!

April 28, 2022 | 8:13 AM
in NEWS
32

Sponsored Story

As you may already know, the cleaning industry has terrible practices. Companies overwork and underpay their employees, many of whom are misclassified as contractors and receive no benefits or legal protection. This kind of business model is bad for employees, bad for customers, and, ultimately, bad for society.

Well-Paid Maids, New York’s only accredited living-wage home cleaning company, is working to change that. We believe that everyone who works hard should be able to support themselves and that every worker deserves respectful treatment from their employer. That’s why all of our employees make $26 per hour to start and receive a full benefits package including health, dental, and vision insurance, 100% employer-paid commuting costs, and 22 paid days off per year. By operating in a way that matches your values, we aim to provide a service you can feel good about using.

Reserve an appointment today with one of our happy, hard-working, background checked, masked, fully-vaccinated (and boosted!) employees and help us demonstrate that a living-wage business can succeed in one of the city’s most exploitative industries. To learn more, check out our coverage in The New York Times and on CNN, send us an email at help@wellpaidmaids.com, or give us a ring at (212) 847-1369. We look forward to cleaning for you soon!

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Eric Loughlin
Eric Loughlin
3 years ago

Hello, I am the Area Director for this company and I’d be happy to answer any questions!

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Matt
Matt
3 years ago

Let’s goooo! Can’t wait to give this a try

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Eric Loughlin
Eric Loughlin
3 years ago
Reply to  Matt

We can’t wait for you to try us out! Feel free to reach out to help@wellpaidmaids.com if you have any questions!

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Reply
Eric L.
Eric L.
3 years ago

I am the Area Director for this company and would be happy to answer any questions below

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Jason F
Jason F
3 years ago

Kudos to Wellpaid Maids for addressing something I’ve long felt was a MAJOR issue with cleaning services like Handy, etc… Between this and Revel hiring theor drivers full time, I am encouraged by the rise of living wage companies. Hopefully their success can be the model for other companies to come.

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Eric Loughlin
Eric Loughlin
3 years ago
Reply to  Jason F

Thanks Jason! I couldn’t agree more, the industry if rife with poor business practices and we excited to offer New Yorkers an alternative.

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anonymous UWS
anonymous UWS
3 years ago

Have any WSR readers used this service? Curious to get your feedback, as I’m looking for residential cleaning services now. Thanks for any input.

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Eric Loughlin
Eric Loughlin
3 years ago
Reply to  anonymous UWS

Thanks for your inquiry! If you’d like to see some reviews, our DC branch has been open since 2017 so feel free to get a sense from those clients how they’ve enjoyed our service. You can also contact me directly at help@wellpaidmaids.com and I’d be happy to answer any questions

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J. F.
J. F.
3 years ago

Great company in D.C. Glad to see they are expanding to NYC.

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Eric Loughlin
Eric Loughlin
3 years ago
Reply to  J. F.

We’re happy to be here!

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Maxwell
Maxwell
3 years ago

So good to see a business that’s figured out how to offer good service while taking care of their employees. Sign me up!

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Reply
Eric Loughlin
Eric Loughlin
3 years ago
Reply to  Maxwell

Thanks Maxwell, we couldn’t agree more. Fair labor practice is something that effects us all. We can’t wait to clean your home! Please feel free to contact me at help@wellpaidmaids.com if you need assistance with your booking

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Edgar B.
Edgar B.
3 years ago

Finally, a good cleaning service in NYC! So much better than any other service I’ve tried. I guess it’s because the cleaners get paid a living wage? What a shock!

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Eric Loughlin
Eric Loughlin
3 years ago
Reply to  Edgar B.

If you take care of your people, your people will take care of your clients! I’m glad you’ve enjoyed our service in the past. We can’t wait to clean your home again!

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Tom Camacho
Tom Camacho
3 years ago

What a superb idea! So glad to see a company taking care of its employees like this. We need to move away from paying unlivable wages for service workers. I’ll definitely give this a try.

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Eric Loughlin
Eric Loughlin
3 years ago
Reply to  Tom Camacho

Thanks Tom! We also believe it’s high time that working class people are able to get jobs that allow them to support their families. Please feel free to contact us at help@wellpaidmaids.com if you would like assistance making a booking!

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Andrea
Andrea
3 years ago

So I jumped at this and proceeded to book an appt. For my 1 BR 1 BA apt, with no extras, the rate is $249 for 3 hours. That comes out to $83/hr. You pay your employees $26/hr to start. Can you share what your overhead and profits are so I can understand why I would pay more than 3X what your employee actually grosses? Thank you.

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Chris
Chris
3 years ago
Reply to  Andrea

I can guess at some of the expenses:

1. Payroll Tax
2. Health and Dental coverage
3. Bookkeeping and Sales Tax reporting
4. Salary for manager and owner
5. Marketing
6. Internet, phones, office space if they have it.
7. Accountant: Year end 1099s and filing of taxes.
8. Admin Fees on 401K savings plans.
9. On-boarding and training.
10. Supplies

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Eric Loughlin
Eric Loughlin
3 years ago
Reply to  Chris

Chris,

That’s exactly in the right direction! Thanks for putting your finger on all of this.

I think that back-of-the-napkin math has a place — no one wants to feel like they are being taken for a ride — but a lot of what’s lost when you try to convert pricing to hourly rates are the components that make working with us a job and not a gig.

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Pamela
Pamela
3 years ago
Reply to  Andrea

I have no connection to this company, but I can tell you that a benefits package like this can cost more than the salary.

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Reply
Eric Loughlin
Eric Loughlin
3 years ago
Reply to  Pamela

Pamela,

Thank you for weighing in! Yes, our benefits structure is very costly and is a somewhat “hidden” figure when folks consider our total cost of service.

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Reply
Eric Loughlin
Eric Loughlin
3 years ago
Reply to  Andrea

Payroll taxes take us from $26/h to $34. Supplies, & transportation bump us to $39. Health, dental, and vision + 22 PTO days bring us to $50. The cost of doing business – insurance, rent, government fees, advertising – brings us to $55 to $60.

So, at a home like yours, our margin is ~30%, which pays the salary of our manager – me!

All this math is rough, but hopefully it provides clarity. I hope you find it fair! We look forward to cleaning for you soon.

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Reply
Skeptical
Skeptical
3 years ago
Reply to  Andrea

This doesn’t surprise me. It sounds like they’re doing what many other cleaning companies does which is pay the employees about a third of the cost.
I can pay a living wage (a problematic term itself) pretty simply and not involve a middleman who ads costs for marketing and admin salaries.
I’d also ask what the benefits are and what they cost the employee since often these companies also offer substandard medical that is high cost.
The last couple years I’ve just cleaned my apartment myself and bought a couple “nice” things I wanted as the payment to myself to avoid all the service issues involved with this industry (though prior to Covid I had an excellent woman who charged $40/hr which seemed reasonable to me. Sadly she moved).

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Eric Loughlin
Eric Loughlin
3 years ago
Reply to  Skeptical

Skeptical,

You raise a lot of great points!

Regarding insurance, we offer a gold-level PPO plan with an 80% employer contribution for premiums. That goes for the staff member as well as anyone in their family. The same is true for dental and vision.

In terms of whether you clean yourself, hire an independent person to do it, or hire an agency, it’s really up to a person’s preferences. One thing I would point out is that the overhead costs that come with an agency deliver real value to cleaners.

Due to advertising, we can provide steady, full-time employment. Due to administrative staff, our employees have someone they can call when dealing with a difficult or abusive customer. Due to actual employment with a company, they have access to UI and work comp if they get hurt, things that folks working on their own often lack.

In one sense, it’s easy to wave away what a company brings to bear, but it’s worth thinking through the value of providing someone an actual job versus a gig. Your former cleaner was paid $40 per hour, but what did she earn while she was on vacation? How much did her equipment and supplies cost? What would happen if she broke a bone while cleaning?

These questions are the reason that time and time again we hire people who formerly worked as independent cleaners.

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Kutazwa
Kutazwa
3 years ago

I need job because it’s very hard in my home plzzz any job

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Reply
Eric Loughlin
Eric Loughlin
3 years ago
Reply to  Kutazwa

Hi Kutazwa,

If you are looking for potential employment, please feel free to email your resume to help@wellpaidmaids.com! I’d be happy to look it over and see if we are able to set up an interview.

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Jenner
Jenner
3 years ago

For $83/hour there shouldn’t be “extras” like cleaning the inside of the refrigerator for 40 dollars.

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Reply
Eric Loughlin
Eric Loughlin
3 years ago
Reply to  Jenner

Jenner,

Thank you for your interest in our service! While you can divide our pricing by our estimated number of hours in your home, we are not an hourly service. If it takes longer to get your home clean, we will stay longer and do what needs to be done.

Regarding the Inside Fridge extra – you would be surprised at how time-consuming this one is. Our staff take out all your food, taking care to remember exactly where it was. Then, all the glass shelves and bins are removed and scrubbed down. With the fridge totally empty, they then get to work on the inside. Doing this carefully and thoughtfully takes time.

I hope you’ll give us a whirl! I think you will find that we are offering an incredible value over what you may currently be used to.

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Roger
Roger
3 years ago
Reply to  Eric Loughlin

$249 for a minimum 3 hour cleaning is, indeed, $83/hour no matter how you want to twist it. Regular rate for apt cleaners in nyc is about 50/hour

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Reply
Eric Loughlin
Eric Loughlin
3 years ago
Reply to  Roger

Roger,

You are spot on – we are not a regular cleaning service! I invite you to take a look at our About page to learn more about our business practices and meet some of the cleaners who will be making roughly $55,000 per year to start (+ benefits) at our company.

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Ann M.
Ann M.
3 years ago

Well-Paid Maids personnel are professional, friendly, and care about their clients. The non-toxic products were greatly appreciated. Knowing I am supporting a company that provides a living wage with benefits, adds to the experience of walking into my clean and fresh apartment.

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Reply
Eric Loughlin
Eric Loughlin
3 years ago
Reply to  Ann M.

Ann,

Thank you for the kind comment! We appreciate having you as a customer. Please let us know if you’d like to set up a recurring cleaning. Thanks again!

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Reply

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