12 Tips for Using Janitorial Staffing Agencies to Find New Hires

If you need to hire new employees, but don’t know where to start, janitorial staffing agencies might be your solution. 

Hiring new employees is a process, to say the least. There are plenty of good employees out there, but sorting through applications and interviews takes time. If you need people but don’t have the time to deal with the hiring process, janitorial staffing agencies might be the way to go.

Of course, not all janitorial staffing agencies are the same. Plus, beyond a certain point, they don’t know what your needs are unless you tell them. In other words, what you put into it is what you get out. 

While that sounds like more work that you could do on your own, here’s the good news. You don’t have to go through the entire process for each new hire. Once you have an agency that understands your needs and that you like working with, it’s often just a matter of placing a call. 

So how do you find the right agency? And how do you work with them to find the right people for your commercial cleaning or building services operation? Here are some tips that can help.

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How to work with janitorial staffing agencies to hire the best employees

Your first step is to find a staffing agency you can work with. You’ll be hard-pressed to find any dedicated janitorial staffing agencies. Most agencies are generalists, meaning they take care of staffing for anything from secretarial work to welding to event staffing to solar installers. Other agencies may specialize in the services industries, such as hospitality, janitorial, etc. 

That’s not a negative, though. One of the benefits of working through an agency is that they take care of things like looking through applications, dealing with the paperwork, initial interviews, and most of the time and effort that comes with hiring. They’re pros. However, that brings us to our first set of tips, which is finding the right agency to work with. 

1. Look for an agency that includes janitorial services. You don’t need to find a specialized agency to fill your staffing needs. As long as they have experience with service and hospitality staffing, including janitorial, you should be fine. 

2. Peruse the job boards. The people looking for jobs are looking at Indeed, Glassdoor, ZipRecruiter, and similar sites. Look up a few sites and see who has the top listings. It will only take you a few minutes, but will give you a good idea of which agency might give you the most visibility.

3. Check the rates. There’s no “right” answer here. Some janitorial staffing agencies will charge more or less than others. At the same time, they may offer more or less services. It’s worth paying for what you need. 

4. Ask questions. What is their permanent placement rate? How comprehensive are their background screenings? What happens if you aren’t happy with the service? 

5. Check reviews. You know the ins and outs of online reviews, so don’t get hung up on a handful of negative comments. Do, however, keep an eye out for common themes from workers and people using the agency. 

How to improve the hiring process

Finding the right staffing agency is part of the process. The other part is working with them to find the right people. To that end, it’s helpful to be as detailed and clear as possible about your needs. Remember, though, you only have to go through this process once. Unless your needs change, you can stick with the same agency and job description for any future hiring needs. 

Here are some of the things janitorial staffing agencies need to understand in order to help you find the right new hire.

6. Hours and pay: Part of finding the right person means finding someone to work the shifts you need. If you need someone for after-hours shifts, say so. Full-time or part-time? The more precise you can be, the better fit you’ll find. Include the pay rate, as well, to help pull in the right candidates.

7. Benefits: List any benefits you offer, such as 401k or insurance, to attract employees.

8. Permanent or temporary: Again, the more details you can give, the better your chances of finding the right person for the job. In this case, if the job is temporary, list the specific dates. 

9. Duties: You don’t need to go into minute details, but a good overview is helpful. You can look at your job site checklists for this. 

10. Qualifications: If you have any specific qualifications, be sure to list them. These might include things like a valid driver’s license or the ability to lift, say, 50 pounds. 

11. Preferred certifications: You may or may not have success finding a new hire with the certifications you prefer. However, you can still include them so any janitorial staffing agencies know to move that candidate to the top of the list. 

12. Company culture: Every commercial cleaning company has a culture. Some pride themselves on a professional look or dress code. Others ensure their teams work well together and trust each other. So, what is your cleaning company like? A cultural fit is important, especially with smaller teams. 

Of course, a good agency will help you with most of this. In any case, though, once you’ve gone through the process, it gets easier.  And you can reuse the information for future hiring!