What Does a Janitor Job Description Entail?
Posted September 26th, 2018.
Are you a janitor looking to get hired or a company hoping to employ a janitor? Janitors are the unseen force behind a productive office space. After all, everyone works harder and smarter when they have a clean, organized, and pleasant work environment. A janitors job description (and matching a resume and cover letter to it) is an essential part of the hiring process. The first step to getting a clean office—or making an office clean for a living—involves a clear job description.
A clear janitor job description is essential for a few reasons:
- It determines whether a candidate has the skills necessary for the job
- It sets expectations for the standards an employer expects
- It allows a candidate to tailor a resume and cover letter to the employer’s specific needs
- It helps references properly recommend a job candidate
Clarity in a janitor job description can help an employer find the best match for the role.
Janitors are valuable team members who do more than sweep the floor. They participate in safety and security protocols that deeply impact businesses. Employers and candidates cannot overstate the gravity of those safety and security-specific tasks.
Elements of a Janitor Job Description
General duties: The job description should include general tasks, such as mopping, wiping down counters, and cleaning.
Specialized cleaning duties: The job description should talk about specific cleaning duties, like using dust equipment on computers, dissembling, cleaning, and servicing fans, and more. Be sure to list any repair specific crossover duties here.
Language: Some offices require multiple languages, such as English, Spanish, and French. If you’re bilingual or writing a job description, make sure to include this requirement, and indicate if it’s just a spoken language requirement or a written language requirement as well.
Safety tasks: Janitors are responsible for working with (and often maintaining the stock of) cleaning materials and other fluids.
Reporting duties: Janitors usually fill out reports, such as cleaning and maintenance logs and supply checks.
Security tasks: Janitors often handle cleaning commercial locations at night, meaning they are responsible for locking up after their arrival and once they leave. This can include using alarm systems with specific codes.
Bug prevention and removal: Sometimes, janitors spray pest control chemicals and have to check and maintain bug and mouse traps.
HVAC (heating, ventilation, and air conditioning) cleaning and maintenance duties: Advanced janitorial job descriptions can include HVAC duties and necessary certifications.
Additional specifics you may wish to include in a janitor job description:
- Cleaning, waxing, and mopping floors
- Vacuuming carpets
- Wall and glass washing
- Rug shampooing
- Trash removal and disposal
- Boiler and furnace maintenance
- Cleaning toilets, sinks, and other bathroom elements
- Outdoor maintenance and sweeping
- Detail cleaning
- Polishing fixtures and furniture, including office desks
- Occasional deep cleans
- Record keeping (cleaning supplies list)
- Trash disposal
Not every janitor has to be proficient in every duty, but it can help to be able to perform these tasks.
A janitor job description should also include physical requirements, like needing to move furniture, drive forklifts (which requires a separate certification), or use buffing equipment.
Janitor Job Description: Schedule and Pay
Janitor jobs can vary when it comes to schedule. Many office janitors work primarily at night. Some positions require weekend hours from janitors, while other offices prefer janitors to work early in the morning or during regular business hours. It’s important to set expectations by including the shift details in the job description.
Additionally, it’s easier to recruit high-quality candidates for a janitorial role when you pay a living wage. Make sure you include that wage and detailed compensation information in the janitor job description.
How to Write a Janitorial Resume
Janitorial resumes should hit on the critical duties outlined in the janitor job description. A good janitor resume should include:
- Name, address, phone number, email, and LinkedIn profile (if you have one).
- Jobs from present to past, in reverse-chronological order, listing the duties of each position in its description—these should match the job description as closely as possible.
- Education and degree(s) completed.
- Language proficiency.
It may be helpful to highlight any safety and security protocol experience, such as cash handling or key-holder duties in retail positions. A good janitor resume will also include a bit about your goals.
Being a janitor, especially overnight at a financial company or other office building means earning a great deal of trust from the employer. Anything to accurately state those trustworthy qualities will help immensely when it comes to janitorial positions.
You can also vary your language a bit in your resume and cover letter. Your cover letter should be brief—just a paragraph or two—and should introduce yourself to your potential employer and explain your qualifications. Consider alternating the word ‘janitor’ with the term ‘custodian.
Hiring a Janitor: What to Look For in a Resume and Cover Letter
From the employer perspective, you want to find specific items in your candidates’ cover letters and resumes.
Search for anything that highlights security and safety duties, such as key-holding and cash handling, or bank deposit duties.
Look for consistent employment and candidates who submit references before your request.
Check for proper spelling and grammar, which indicates the ability to fill out maintenance reports correctly.
What Skills Does a Janitor Need?
Janitor job descriptions may include requirements for specific skills, such as:
- Machine repair, maintenance, and storage
- Report preparations and procedures
- Chemical dilution, separation, and containment
- Vehicle and equipment operation
Let Fox Cities Janitorial Help You
Having trouble writing a janitor job description? Perhaps you’re a janitor looking for a new role. In either situation, Fox Cities Janitorial can help. We love qualified candidates—and more than that, we enjoy matching those job seekers with productive roles.
Whether you’re a hard worker looking for a new custodian job or a business in need of office cleaning services, Fox Cities Janitorial is here to help. Clean office spaces make everyone feel proud, welcome, meaningful, and productive, whether they’re the crew cleaning them, the customers inhabiting them, or the office employees getting the job done. Let us help you achieve that cleanliness today.