The Janitors' Closet

Cleaning house the aerobic way

Once again, in "Exercise in Utility", the Wall Street Journal has showcased my janitorial industry with a front page article (Jan 24, 2012).

Steve Markovitx "does squats while washing windows. He performs lunges and hip twists while using the vacuum cleaner, 'the most versatile exercise machine' he knows. He burns so many calories that he can forgive himself for occasional indulgences, such as vanilla ice cream slathered with peanut butter."

Without commenting on the bit about slathering ice cream with peanut butter, I can verify the exercise content.  My janitorial crews are almost universally fit; those past workers I've stayed in contact with are largely "large".

And, truth be told, I need to get out with my crews a bit more often.

In the same article, a Carol Torgan "suggests 'doing toe raises to strengthen the calves while vacuuming, washing dishes or brushing your teeth.' Still, she warns that the overzealous could hobble themselves with such ailments as knee bursitis—also known as housemaid's knee—or suffer from "increased inhalation of chemical fumes from cleaning agents.' "

Sounds like all they need is a people friendly chemical kit.

Are schools making kids sick?

Caught an article in CNN Health on the links between students' health and indoor air quality: the debilitating presence of mold, airborne dust and other pollutants in schools.

According to author David S. Martin, "Figures are hard to come by, but studies have estimated that a third or more of U.S. schools have mold, dust and other indoor air problems serious enough to provoke respiratory issues like asthma in students and teachers.  A national survey of school nurses found that 40% knew children and staff adversely affected by indoor pollutants."

Mold is not quite the concern here in Arizona's dry Sonoran desert as it might be in moister locals, but we do perform a visual inspection for it when doing a Greenguard Environmental Institute based facility inspection for a client.

Dust (see above about a dry Sonoran desert), however, is a biggie.

Using HEPA filtration on our vacuums, vacuuming rather than dust mopping tile floors, using microfiber damp mops rather than string mops, and microfiber wipes rather than feather or lambs wool dusters, we've the systems in place to remove, rather than redistribute, dust, and to keep it out of the air.  We also measure indoor air quality - airborne dust particles in the size range of most allergens - and share results with our clients.  In a tightly sealed facility, cleaned multiple nights per week, we generally see a substantial reduction in airborne dust.  It's called "cleaning for health".  Clients appreciate the benefit.

If a school kid is home sick from a pathogen or allergen he inhaled at school, he cannot learn.  If a client is home sick from a particle he inhaled at work, he cannot sign our check...

Janitor jobs: Gingrich vs Juan Williams

So, is janitorial work demeaning?  More so, say, than not working but accepting food stamps?

I wrote a while back about Newt Gingrich's comments that inner city kids might benefit by being allowed to do part time work around their schools, including janitorial work, so as to earn money (hard to do in many inner cities) and to learn, early, vital job skills.  Same subject came up, via pundit Juan Williams, in last night's presidential debate; here's the clip:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hm51_20GEoU&feature=player_embedded

While I didn't start in janitorial (lived in the suburbs, so mowing lawns was available - I began at 12 or 13), the basic point is well noted - the earlier one learns to support oneself, rather than assuming an entitlement, the more likely he is to continue throughout life.

And, sorry, I've never seen honest work as demeaning.  Particularly janitorial work.  We clean buildings to keep people safe and healthy.  Not an inconsequential task.

Arizona sales tax "loopholes" leave state $10 billion short

Caught an article in our local Arizona Republic, noting that "loopholes" in our tax system forgo the collection of $10 billion annually, greater than the entire state budget.

"People don't pay state sales tax on a host of goods, including horse vitamins and motion picture equipment.  They also don't pay a tax on services, such as haircuts and massages", according to the article, by a reporter that I usually respect.

My first thought was that a tax on services (Arizona, and most states, do not tax services) would require me to tax my clients for the janitorial service we provide, adding 7.3% to their monthly bill.  In looking at the pricing differential that convinces many prospects to choose another service, or to keep the office cleaning in-house, I strongly suspect that that increase would would convince many of my clients, and of everyone else's clients, to cancel service and take the work in-house.  As a rule, clients have much less experience, and industry knowledge, in areas of "cleaning for health", or safety, or environmental concerns, so moving a large chunk of commercial janitorial work out of the hands of the professionals would lead directly to less desirable health, safety and environmental results.

Tax policy does have the occasional unintended consequence.

A couple other points I noticed:

Of that $10 billion, about $3.5 billion is in exemptions - "loopholes" - for goods not currently taxed, according to the article "often at the urging of lobbyists.  They are either egregious examples of special treatment or well-reasoned exemptions to taxation, depending on political and fiscal views."  Got me to wondering if we really could collect $3.5 billion on things like "horses' vitamins and motion picture equipment".  Also mentioned was food sold at rodeos, surely a huge potential revenue source.

Only deep into the article was a mention made of the general food tax exemption, which, if you run the figures, turns out to be better than a quarter of that $3.5 billion.  I guess the groceries exemption would be an example of the evil lobby put together by folks who buy groceries.  Not mentioned is the huge potential revenue stream possible by taxing real estate purchases.  This would be a good time to initiate that tax - not much property is selling locally, so folks would have time to adjust before they're likely to buy.

One also wonders how much of the remaining $6.5 billion, not currently collected on services, would really be available by taxing "such as haircuts and massages".  Had the article really wanted to explore the realities of the "close the loopholes" proposal, it might have mentioned taxing financial services, legal services, education, and health care (everything from doctor visits to surgery) - surely larger sources of revenue than haircuts and massages.  Wonder if anybody would mind.

One man's tax loophole is another man's heart surgery.

Photo ID and DOB to purchase cleaning chemicals

Caught an article on a new Illinois law requiring presentation of photo ID for one to purchase common cleaning and maintenance chemicals, such as Draino.  This will protect the public  from those criminals and terrorists who use such in their nefarious activities....

Conversely, a proposal to require the presentation of photo ID at the poling place languishes in the Illinois Legislature.  One is tempted to speculate on whether such legislation as the chemical purchase ID act might be a bit less common if voters were require to show ID.

On the security front, the chemical photo ID law also requires the purchaser to provide, and the store clerk to note down, his address and date of birth.  A good start on stealing someones identity involves acquiring his DOB, address and driver license information (what most folks present when asked for ID).  Perhaps we need some legislation to screen store clerks, and to safeguard the personal information that they are now required to acquire.  And maybe some background checking, and employment standards, on the state employees that would need to be made responsible for the implementation and oversight of the store clerk screening/personal information securing program.

This could be a whole new jobs creation program.

General McCaffrey comments

Interesting remarks by General Barry McCaffrey, our onetime "drug czar", on the dangers of our dysfunctional immigration and border control policy.  Covers the economic impact of what I'd call "high end" and "low end" immigration, impact of our "war on drugs" and huge prison population on the growth of gang activity, Mexican drug cartels, and so on.  It's contained in a dispatch by Michael Yon, my favorite military correspondent.

McCaffrey's thoughts resonate with a number of points I've made here on various aspects of immigration policy, and with what I've argued elsewhere on our self-defeating (and hugely expensive) corrections system.

Enjoy!

Good thing the carpet wasn't easy to ignite...

I see a lot of other firm's equipment in the janitor closets of places I'm quoting.  Besides the usual (and oft
remarked upon) safety and regulatory concerns of unlabeled squirt bottles and other chemical containers, lack of MSDS books, unfiltered vacuums, etc., one notices quite a few vacuum cleaner cords of questionable provenance.  Think twisted, nicked cords, taped up repairs, ungrounded (those pesky third prongs keep pulling out), perhaps of too small a gauge to support the length of cord or the vacuum.

Here's a fun video of the potential result.

We figure it's better to check our crew's equipment regularly, than to have to move the file cabinet.

Phoenix GoGreen 11

We at CBN Building Maintenance are quite proud to have been a sponsor of, and an exhibitor at, Phoenix's GoGreen '11 Conference, joining our friends at the City of Phoenix, our Chamber of Commerce, Harmon Solar (who are lined up to put some solar panels on my roof) and a lot of other folks that we work with.

The event featured a day of educational panel sessions and networking opportunities, showcasing statewide sustainable business leader case studies and their success stories, to allow conference attendees the opportunity to learn and implement best practices and create viable partnerships locally.

Got some good ideas, a bit of media exposure, and several service quotes.  Most gratifying, we're starting service for a school next month - the owner was trying to implement an environmentally friendly cleaning program, using a ma & pa firm that had not a clue.  And we're still working a couple of prospects.

Made our registration fee back already.

Industry certification

Caught an article in BSCAI's SmartBrief to the effect that less than 1% of the janitorial industry carries any sort of professional certification.

I've long believed in training my managerial folks, and assisting them on the path to professional certification.  The "less than 1%" figure is born out, at least locally, by the BSCAI's website:if you search for folks in Arizona holding BSCAI's executive or managerial certifications, you find that half of them are with my firm.

Here's some notes I posted a couple of years ago on the subject:

"I'm asked, from time to time, what the owner of a new janitorial firm ought do to both gain technical competence in his chosen field, and to demonstrate to his potential clients both his bona-fides, and that technical competence.   

" Besides joining and participating in his local BBB and Chamber of Commerce (covered earlier), I suggest a bit of what we've done (we provide janitorial service in Phoenix AZ):

• Building Service Contractors Association International - great seminars and conventions, links to member firms from their website, accreditation programs, industry contacts and a monthly magazine

• American Indoor Air Quality Council- local champers give workshops, good contacts in the HVAC and mold remediation industries, and a monthly publication

• U. S. Green Building Council - knowledge you need should you have a client looking at LEED certification; local chapters can train in LEED criteria

• IMAGE- a new Immigration & Customs program, allowing firms to partner with the Feds to better control ones hiring and screening procedures.

Try it - you'll be more competent, more legitimate, and can demonstrate it."

University of Minnesota Team Cleaning dispute.

The Minnesota Daily informs us that the University of Minnesota and the Teamsters Union, representing the University's janitors, disagree on the University's attempt to implement "Team Cleaning" procedures in cleaning campus buildings.  “The custodians’ contract states that each worker can bid on a specific area to clean, based upon seniority. Curtis Swenson, a business agent for the union, said the new team cleaning practice, which has multiple custodians cleaning the same area, violates that clause of the contract”.  Wonder if the senior janitors know where the easiest buildings lie.

"Team Cleaning" allows a multi-man crew in a large building to specialize, each crew member doing a particular task.  It generally replaces "zone cleaning", such as the University's janitorial staff uses, in which an individual cleaner does all tasks in a given area.   Here's how we summarize "Team Cleaning" in our firm's Procedures Manual:

 “Team Cleaning” can be used to divide tasks among several workers, or to set up a routine for one person who cleans the entire building.  Generally, the system involves moving in a circular path and the following steps:

1) “Light Duty” includes: emptying trash, ashtrays, dusting, spot cleaning, carpet spotting and door and interior glass spotting all in one operation (includes restroom & lunchroom trash).

2) Vacuuming floors (both carpet and tile), vents, webs, etc. with backpack vacuum. Do this after your “Light Duty” cleaning and check previous work as you go.

3) Rest rooms & lunchrooms (can easily be combined with light duty cleaning when in a small building).

4) Damp and wet mopping."

"Team Cleaning" promotes both efficiency (worker productivity) and quality, by training and equipping each worker in a specialized task.  Productivity allows for better pay, and a wealthier society.  Those societies that do not increase productivity stagnate; those industries and firms that do not increase productivity loose jobs to out-sourcing, or mechanization.  Centuries ago, the Luddites in England tried to "protect jobs" by smashing mechanical looms.  These days, you'll notice that folks who try to produce commercial cloth by hand weaving tend to starve.  Didn't work in England; won't work in Minnesota.