Key points.
“Cleaning” covers three different mandates: regular upkeep, deep clean, move-out.
Hiring someone directly can make you an employer in the CNESST’s eyes.
The list of rooms and exclusions is worth more than an hourly rate.
Choose the service that fits your situation
Regular upkeep, a catch-up clean and an end-of-lease clean do not take the same time, the same equipment or the same price. Name the mandate before talking money: it determines everything else.
Also choose between a company and someone hired directly. It is not only a question of price: the second option can make you an employer, with the obligations that come with it.
Regular upkeep
Every two weeks or monthly. Surfaces, bathroom, kitchen, floors, to an agreed list.
Deep clean
A one-time catch-up: behind the appliances, cupboards, baseboards, windows.
Move-out
Empty unit, end of lease. The mandate is about what has to be restored.
À la carte
One specific task, repeated or not. To be defined room by room.
References : CNESST, travail domestique ↗
List the surfaces and exclusions
The most common misunderstanding is not about quality, it is about scope. List the rooms included, and above all the exclusions: inside the oven, the fridge, windows, basement, garage, litter box, dishes, tidying.
Also specify the frequency per task. Plenty of things are done monthly rather than every visit, and that is fine, as long as it is said.
Whatever is not named will be interpreted, and rarely the same way by both sides.
Agree on products and access arrangements
Agree on who provides the products and equipment, and which ones. It is a question of results on some surfaces, and a question of health in any home with children, people with asthma or pets.
Health Canada publishes guidance on the safety of household chemical products: storage, labelling, and above all never mixing products. If you supply the products, supply the instructions too.
References : Santé Canada ↗
Assess the service and adjust the frequency
After two or three visits, adjust: the frequency, the duration, the list. A cleaning mandate that never changes is rarely the right one six months in.
If you hire someone directly rather than a company, check your situation with the CNESST. Since April 6, 2022, coverage is automatic when the person works for you 420 hours over 12 months, or 30 hours a week for 7 consecutive weeks: you must then register as an employer and pay a contribution. Below those thresholds, optional protection exists, at your cost.
Below the thresholds, optional protection remains available: at your cost, with an annual wage declaration, and the worker must be informed.
References : CNESST, travail domestique ↗ · CNESST, protection facultative ↗
Services to define with the provider
| What to compare | What to clarify with the professional |
|---|---|
| Regular upkeep | Rooms included, frequency per task, expected duration |
| Deep clean | What gets added: behind the appliances, cupboards, baseboards |
| Move-out | Empty unit, condition expected at end of lease |
| À la carte | The specific task, and what it excludes |
Your preparation checklist
Frequently asked questions
- A company or someone hired directly?
- Both can be defended, but they do not carry the same consequences. With a company, you buy a service. Hiring someone directly can make you an employer under the CNESST as soon as 420 hours over 12 months or 30 hours a week for 7 weeks are reached. CNESST, travail domestique ↗
- Do I have to register with the CNESST?
- If the person reaches the thresholds, yes: you must register as an employer and pay a contribution. Below them, you may take out optional protection, at your cost, with an annual wage declaration. CNESST, protection facultative ↗
- Who provides the products?
- That is to be agreed, and it is decided as much by results as by health. If you supply the products, follow Health Canada’s guidance on the safety of household chemical products, starting with never mixing them. Santé Canada ↗
- Why are two prices so different for “the same cleaning”?
- Because it is almost never the same cleaning. The list of rooms, the frequency per task and the exclusions explain the gap long before the hourly rate. Compare the lists, not the rates.
Sources and references.
Conditions and rules may change; consult the relevant organizations for your project. The questions, tables and examples are preparation tools provided by Projet Maison 360. Source titles and links are in French.
