You encounter a day porter everywhere but hardly notice their presence. They are the hardworking people in shopping centers and malls, commercial buildings, offices, schools, and hospitals. They are the ones who make sure there is cleanliness all around.
Day porters are similar to janitors because both provide valuable service and ensure that every space of the property has a pleasant atmosphere free of dirt, marks, and obstructions. However, unlike janitors, day porters also see to it that every fixture in the building is in good order. Additionally, they make sure that whatever is not working is repaired right away.
They are discreet while they work in the background, and without their service, any property could quickly deteriorate and become uninhabitable. These workers do their work without intruding on the activities of other people in the building. They are on deck during the busiest hours of the day, especially in high traffic areas.
Importance of Having a Day Porter
If you own or run a building, you generally hire night workers to do a massive cleanup when there is no activity in the building. But you need the assistance of day porters during business hours for the following reasons:
- Your building’s high traffic areas, such as the bathroom, have to be checked throughout the day so that it remains spotless and odorless.
- You need to strictly comply with local health codes to keep your business open. Thus, you can’t merely rely on night cleaners.
- You have to appease the public that comes to your building, as they expect tidiness from your facilities.
- You can focus on other aspects of your business while day porters maintain your building’s presentable image throughout the day.
Some buildings have stringent security standards that do not allow anyone’s presence without supervision. This limitation could pose problems with night clean up schedules. But if you hire a day porter, it’s possible to clean the premises without breaching any security protocols.
It’s important to identify what type of daytime help would be most beneficial to your business as well as to your building tenants and visitors. This way, you would be able to maximize and satisfy the need for hiring a day porter.
Duties of Day Porters
A property that welcomes a large number of people every day needs to be spotless and well maintained. While there are building managers, it’s a day porter who delivers the hands-on service.
Some of the duties they perform include the following, depending on your arrangement:
- Keeping the lobby clean and orderly
- Keeping the common areas free of dirt
- Removing safety hazards in common areas
- Maintaining the cleanliness of washrooms and preventing slips
- Keeping the canteen and break rooms clean, especially during busy hours
- Preparing and cleaning up the conference rooms before and after meetings
- Performing minor repair work, such as replacing busted light bulbs
- Clearing litters and debris in parking lots and common areas
- Disinfecting the building, as needed
- Washing the windows
- Emptying and cleaning up trash bins
- Keeping the cleaning supplies well-stocked through proper inventories and requests
Qualifications of a Day Porter
Employers won’t necessarily need day porters with formal education since they develop the skill while on the job. They should, however, have good interpersonal and communication skills to deal with supervisors, tenants, occupants, and guests. Likewise, they have the physical strength and stamina to work all day. They also need some mechanical ability to do repairs and handle automated equipment.
Some of the qualities of a good day porter include:
- Knowledge and skill in various cleaning techniques, tools, and equipment
- Knowledge of the importance of cleanliness, sanitation, and safety
- Ability to do their work efficiently without disrupting people
- Initiative to repair and replace broken outlets, locks, and other fixtures.
Finding Orange County Day Porters for Your Office Cleaning and Maintenance Needs
It might seem like hiring a day porter is easy, but you need to have someone who is the right fit for your business. It’s a good idea to work with a janitorial agency that will do a background check before hiring the most qualified man for the job. Capable and conscientious agencies also administer a drug test for its potential hires.
Ideally, you have to provide a job description of what you need from a day porter so that the person hired will know what’s expected of them. Define which of these duties are critical to your business since you would not want your help to focus on just one aspect of his work.
Moreover, be reasonable when you have to assign additional tasks since maintenance work can be overwhelming. There have been instances where day porters don’t return the next day because their employers pile up an impossible list of responsibilities.
Prestige Property Services is a premier provider of full cleaning services for your home or business. Contact us today!
