Cleaner

Your sister's cleaner may well be working part time while on Universal Credit, but either way the only law breaker here is your sister by paying £7 an hour. Whatever someone's situation, whether the income is being declared or not, exploitation is never right. I do hope that you will pay your cleaner at least the minimum wage when you do employ one!

I expect the low rate is somehow tied in with the woman not wanting to lose any benefits.

Not true JenniferEccles. When you register as self employed with Universal Credit, you have to earn a basic amount, if you declare you are working 16 hours a week for example, you will be deemed to be earning 16 hours at £8.45. There is no way that the benefit system will condone illegal practices.

It's not about judging someone on benefits - to me it's more about judging someone who is taking advantage of the fact that there are those who have to work for such a dreadful wage, without any legal protection and without the chance to accrue a pension or rights to sick pay etc.

I'm not saying that this is what the OP's sister is doing, as we don't know all of the circumstances, but in principle I think it is wrong.

My brother pays his cleaner £12.50 per hour, ( I used to do it for nothing) she is an excellent cleaner who earns every penny she makes. Not my business if she is on benefits or not.

£7 is slave labour - although I think that's what they pay in McDonald's - not sure ...

I got my excellent cleaner through an agency. I pay them an amount every month for having her registered and insured by them and I pay her in cash. I've paid her through lockdown and look forward to when she can come back. She came back for a short time when lockdown eased a bit and brought me a lovely bouquet of lilies and a box of chox for continuing her pay. I was so surprised. After all my pension continued to be paid and it wasn't her fault we weren't allowed people in our houses.

I'd take her on and pay her minimum wage. Being a single mum she'll be limited as to what hours she does anyway so very unlikely to be breaking the law and needs all the extra she can get. You can always ask her.

We pay £12.50 an hour, holidays and sick pay and have had our wonderful cleaner for 24 years. I am putting her pay up in the new year from £50 for four hours to £60. We would trust her with our lives and our last penny and feel so lucky to have her supporting us now we are old and less able.

If your paying someone well below the national minimum wage and cash in hand, it's your morals that need a double check, never mind the cleaning lady.

My cleaner is £13 an hour but supplies everything. I feel this is a fair wage as she doesn’t get holidays, sickness etc. She is a hard worker and I don’t ask if she pays tax etc. That is between her and the tax office! I think it is wrong to only pay £7 per hour, could you exist on that? Really it is exploitation of someone’s circumstances if nothing else.

Like many others here, I stopped my cleaner at the beginning of shielding. She came through an agency and we paid her £13 per hour, which is the London Living Wage.
The agency covered absences and breakages etc (not that there were any).

I don’t condone the scenario of paying someone £7 an hour and then questioning whether they are behaving in a manner that is “above board”!

This lady is probably not earning enough to pay tax, though she should be declaring her earnings to her local job Centre as effects benefit payments, having said that I don’t blame people sometimes for not declaring all their income (yes I know it’s wrong !) but sometimes very small amounts of extra money make such a huge difference when one is really struggling to make ends meet. Me, I’d mind my own business

Being above board is surely at least paying the minimum wage ,

Paying £7 an hour for a cleaner, you should hang your head in shame. You don't want to clean yourself but you expect someone to it for a pittance. As for being on benefit and not paying tax that is none of your business.

What an absolute disgrace. Paying anybody £7.00 an hour. And then having some ‘moral scruples’ about tax! Unbelievably poor attitude. X

I pay £14 an hour to a single person business. I am invoiced and pay by bank transfer. I prefer to do this as it protects me and gives her a reasonable income. £7 an hour is not enough.

I pay my cleaner and hairdresser cash. Both poorly paid jobs. Everyone is struggling to survive.

I have a cleaner now (hadnt for ages) but now osteoarthritis too bad, had her clean before lockdown, she gave me special slightly lower price as she knows a family member, thats how i heard of her- but now after lockdown shes put mine to £10 per hr- (some pay more i think) however, it is a valid cleaning business she started up on her own and she raised price on advice of her accountant- who also helps her on paying tax so its all above board.

My god. Give the woman a break. I wouldn't have thought she is getting off on exotic holidays. She's.probably barely surviving. Whether she pays tax or not Is her respobsibility

I transfer the payment by bank whens shes done- it got a business name/account and everything's done correctly.she's done well to get it all going by herself.now she employs a couple of others too i think.

*she's done well.?

I have a cleaner and she charges £10 per hour , she has lots clients around my area so is doing very well . I give her cash and don’t think about what she does with it after , that’s her business. All I know she is a godsend to us all in our village and worth every penny .
Ps, I do think paying £7 per hour is rather mean .

But if she had not had to pay taxes- as someone said, some don't earn enough to have to- then it would have been her business!

Would you clean a strangers home for £7 an hour???!