Hi my name is George and I’ve had over 32 years’ experience placing domestic staff in fine homes across the country both as an agency owner and as a placement counsellor. One of the most frequent questions I get asked by many of my clients is, should I hire a couple to work in my home over having two or more separate, unrelated domestics, say a housekeeper and laundress for example. I think an honest answer lies in the size of the home and the amount of work and responsibilities required each day. If the job really only requires one and a half workers, ie one full time worker and a part time person, a couple would probably be an overkill. If ,on the other hand, the employer isn’t satisfied with the results they’re getting with two or more full time domestic workers, hiring a qualified, trained couple might be the right decision for a number of reasons.
One plus lies in the ability of an experienced couple to work more efficiently and harmoniously as a team. While two more separate domestic workers may have frequent disagreements or even violent arguments about who is responsible for what, seasoned couples have years of experience in efficient division of labor and know exactly which tasks each will be doing during the course of each day. Then too, couples often have a higher skill level developed from long term experience working in fine homes where the expectations of the employers are somewhat higher. For example, families have often told me about the immediate improvement they see when they employ a couple after having had two or more full time, domestic workers in their homes. Their homes are kept much cleaner and are far better organized, the laundering and ironing are done much more professionally and the level of cooking and culinary expertise has improved considerably making dining a far more pleasurable experience .
The benefits don’t end there. Experienced couples usually are able to manage homes and estates and deal with contractors, vendors and repairmen in addition to having one member who is an experienced gardener/ repairman who can help save on outside costs together with the same person being a skilled driver who can transport members of the family to wherever they need to go. With a townhouse or very large home with considerable staff, many really good couples are able to train, supervise and even terminate staff if necessary improving the smoothness and efficiency in which the home operates which in turn helps to take the pressure off their employers. In short, many affluent families who employ multiple domestic staff in their homes, townhouses or estates are turning to trained couples as a superior, more viable alternative in their pursuit for a smoother running and more effectively organized home.
George Handin
Placement Specialist