Making the most of having household staff is not always easy. There may be some confusion about the job. The new employee might not completely understand the different home layouts or your different job expectations right away. Therefore proper training of the household staff is necessary, as well as dedication to retain them. Here are some tips on how to do that.

Training Household Staff

Have clear terms and conditions from the start

State every detail of the job description. Make your expectations clear to the staff, and ensure they know what you want them to handle. To help with this, you can make a list that shows all the tasks you want them to do and then show them how you want it done. For example, make that known if you want a maid to vacuum your living room. If you have specific requirements for that, make that known as well. This will make it more straightforward to train and retain household staff.

Familiarize the household staff with the tools

If their job includes using a tool, then make sure they have access to one and that they know how to use it. For example, if they must use your vacuum cleaner make sure they know how and where to empty it, and what outlets they can plug it into.

Have others help train the household staff

Such as house managers or existing workers. A house manager specializes in supervising. Therefore having a house manager present during training can help the new employee learn to cooperate and coordinate with the team. Present house workers might require help with their current job if there is too much work. It is not unusual for maids or housekeepers to work together in the same household. If they have already worked for a while, they can help train new employees and show them how to do the job. This is also important as the household staff should learn to work and cooperate together.

Train soft skills

Make sure to encourage the learning of soft skills or social skills. The employee should be adept at good communication, teamwork, work ethic, positive attitude and flexibility. These are important traits for any team, but especially important if it is a person spending lots of time around other people not a part of the team. If you train household staff to get along well in their environment, you are more likely to retain them.

Hold regular meetings to further train household staff

These meetings can work as a review of the work that has been done. This is also the time when you can make suggestions for the workers and address what you want to be done differently. For new employees, these should be about once a month. For older ones, it should be quarterly or biannually.

Talk to them one on one

You don’t always have to wait for the meetings. Spending time with a household employee one on one can help them understand more what the expectations are and how to do the job correctly. You can give them constructive feedback at this time and tell them if there is anything you want to be done differently.

Retaining Household Staff

It is not always easy to retain a new employee. Many employees quit or lose their job in the first month of employment. You can reduce this likelihood though. Do this by taking the steps below. 

Encourage them

Thanking and praising the household staff for doing well encourages them to stay with you and motivates them to do even more work the next time. On top of this, it also lets the staff know what you expect in the future, causing less confusion.

Reward household staff

Sometimes giving them rewards will also give great encouragement to the employees. Giving them a bonus, an extra holiday or other time off is a great way to make them want to prioritize you over other employers. This will make it much easier to retain more household staff.

Give household staff some time off

Letting the household staff have a little lunch break or relax is important so they do not feel burned out. Employees who do not feel overworked will do their job at a higher level. This will also make them keener on staying at the job rather than looking for a new one.

Have specific hours and conditions from the start

In the beginning, you must be clear about their work hours and the house’s ground rules. This can include the dress code, edicate in the household and any other rules you require while working. Reviewing these with your employee is essential so they do not feel confused by the schedule or regulations.

Simple kindness

Just like with all people, simple kindness goes a long way. Everyone wants to feel like they are respected. The more they feel this way the more likely they will stay with you.