It is not easy being a cleaner.

"I had to wipe semen off the floor every morning"

Recently I bumped into an old acquaintance of sorts (I hope she is not reading this.) and she was telling me about her job as a property manager and all the dirty (both literally and figuratively) deeds she heard from some of her cleaners.

Some of the stories she shared got me thinking if they really happened in Singapore.

1. I had to wipe semen off the floor every morning

Random staircase sex image.jpg

This auntie was working in one of these really old buildings in Singapore that has many nightclubs. So according to her that there will always be inconsiderate people having sex at the staircase and not clean up after.

She tried to complain to the security team but they just brushed her off.

"Nvm lah auntie. People having a good time. Why must we go and disturb? Any way we can watch free show via CCTV."

2. Some guys flashed me on purpose

It is really not easy being a cleaning lady where one of the many jobs include cleaning of the male toilet. For those of you who are familiar enough with the male toilet will know that there are standing cubicles with no doors. This other cleaning lady actually got flashed by a young man.

"He looks like he is around 20 or 30 yrs old. I wasn't offended or shocked at all. I just told him, "Boy ah, auntie almost 60 years old. What shape and size never see before? Don't need to show me okay?" but too bad he ran off before I could finish the sentence." , my, erm friend, related to me the story while I was laughing my head off. 

And all I could think about is him not washing his hands. 

3. Getting fired for being smelly

Sadly this uncle in his 60s was an odd job cleaner. He was being paid on a daily basis and was working at this place for six months before he got fired and started working with my friend's company.

The supervisor merely told him that he was very smelly and had bad personal hygiene and not suitable for the work. They fired him after six months with immediate effect. This is unacceptable in all the ways.

Not only did his job require him to do a lot of physical tasks that made him perspire, he also did not have a proper rest area. His rest area was a hot little corner hoarded up in a basement carpark.

How do you expect him to smell like a flower every day?

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We all know that there are no elves that will fix our shoes or sew our clothes while we sleep. All our bins, toilets, common areas and more are being taken care of by cleaners. However, how often do we really think about them? How tough is their job? Where do they even rest or have their meals? If you ever need some cleaning agent or trash bags, do you even know where to find them within your office or buildings?

Guilty as charged. Some times we really overlook all these things in our lives. Especially when we are living in a time where it is all about "me". We are living in a time where it is just about ourselves. Personal achievements over the little things in life.
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In recent news, it was announced that cleaners will have to undergo a mandatory Workplace Safety & Health course from 2022 to make sure they are aware of and take precautionary measures against occupational risks such as slips and falls.

I am glad that while everyday people like you and me may have neglected these invisible heroes, there are people fighting for not just their welfare but also for their wages and work progress.

Besides the compulsory safety course, cleaners will also have to sign up for a second Workforce Skills Qualification (WSQ) module validated and endorsed by the Tripartite Cluster for Cleaners (TCC).

These initiatives, which were put forth by the TCC and come under the Progressive Wage Model framework, were accepted by the Government.

The Progressive Wage Model (PWM) is a wage progression pathway that helps to increase workers’ pay through skills upgrade and improved productivity. It is applied to the cleaning, security and landscape sectors, while the model was mandated for lift technicians last year.



In the last budget, my ex-teacher and also labour MP Mr Zainal Bin Sapari fought for the following things for older/poor low wage cleaners. For those of you who are unfamiliar, he has always been advocating for the low wage workers’ rights for a while now.

1) Revise employer’s CPF contribution rates for mature workers aged 55 and above, up to age 65. - checked.

2) Low wage workers to receive mandatory Annual Wage Supplement to reduce income gap. - checked.

3) Employers to bear outpatient cost and outpatient consultation fees (healthcare cost). - While there is no updates publicly on this but this is something that I am sure something will happen eventually.

In March this year, MP Zainal also wrote a blogpost and in parliament, highlighting the need to provide rest areas for outsourced workers.

In his recent Facebook post,

"It was a basic need that was lacking when we engaged these workers on the ground. MOM agreed and the tripartite partners worked together to produce an advisory. Cheers to MOM and the tripartite team for working on this."