For Employers: Green Baize Door’s 10 Golden Rules | Part 1

Green Baize Door Blog: 7th July 2021

For Employers: Green Baize Door’s Golden Rules 

Creating the right balance in your home

Domestic Bliss has never been harder to achieve, as the employer of domestic staff you will know it is hard to find good domestic staff for your household; domestic staff that anticipate your every need are very rare, combined with this reality, household staff are moving from job-to-job more frequently than they use to – Why is this? 

While it is a well proven strategy for National & International companies to offer their customers such things as: gifts, discounts (on future purchases) and air-miles in an effort to maintain their customer’s loyalty, at Green Baize Door we wonder if the leaders of those companies do whatever they can to maintain the loyalty of their domestic staff?

During discussions with domestic staff and their employers, Green Baize Door established that the staff who hold their employers in high esteem, are the same ones that work more effectively and are prepared to commit themselves to working for many years in the same household. What creates this high esteem? We discuss the information we gleaned from our discussions with domestic staff and employers, in the hope that it might help you achieve a harmonious working environment in your own private household…..

Perfecting Good Household Staff Management:

Here are a few ‘little’ things that you can do for your domestic staff that needn't cause you inconvenience, or cost you the earth - after all it is the thought that counts!

• Religious Holidays or National Days of celebration are normally marked with cards and personalised gifts – don’t forget your household staff.
• Don’t forget the birthdays of your household staff. Perhaps a birthday card will suffice, although you might like to buy a small gift or ask chef to make a birthday cake (or something else) – the staff member will be touched by your thoughtfulness.
• At other times, and for no particular reason, you could give your domestic staff complimentary cinema, theatre or opera tickets, treat the staff to lunch (tell the staff that it’s your favorite restaurant because of a certain dish, and that dish must be ordered by someone because “it’s a real treat”; and surreptitiously you have told your personal chef how you like that dish cooked and presented – you are but the winner [again!]), massage vouchers, gym membership, or even manicures for the maids – the financial outlay is insignificant – but the gains are incalculable.
• Offer to train your domestic staff in new skills, this is not just for your benefit but also for the benefit of the household staff too – by increasing their knowledge and skills, the domestic staff will have the satisfaction of knowing they are valued.

GreenBaizeDoor’s Ten Golden Rules will be published in our next blog....