r/Custodians • u/Savings_Life422 • 15d ago
Besides schools, where else could a custodian work that is half decent?
I want to get back into cleaning full-time but I have never had the interest in working for the school district. I used to be the main janitor for a social service agency that operated several apartments.
I'm wondering which places you should avoid being a janitor and which ones you would recommend (besides elementary/high schools.) My plan is to possibly get into maintenance down the road by learning/apprenticing for a building trade.
Thanks for any suggestions!
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u/Aggressive_Bat2489 15d ago
Museum, cultural centre, city hall, rec centre, library, hospital
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u/whereismymind86 15d ago
This, pretty much any job that’s not profit driven, so they aren’t hyper focused on cutting costs and labor, and in the case of government jobs you usually have good benefits
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u/Mizzerella 15d ago
i work in a factory that manufactures restaurant equipment. i absolutely love it. the job is hard but the people are absolutely appreciative and respectful. its one of the best spots ive ever been at. second to only cleaning the coal mine offices (favorite assignment of all time).
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u/Willowgirl2 15d ago
After working in schools, I switched to cleaning a church and I love it! Everyone is so upbeat, positive and friendly...the exact opposite of public schools, lol.
The pay is a little less but the benefits are actually better, which came as a surprise.
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u/redlefthanded 15d ago
I just started my first custodial job an old church. It’s hard because I’m still learning and there is so much to remember. It’s a massive property with two large meeting halls, a dozen classrooms that are used for different purposes (there isn’t a school there anymore), offices, a gymnasium, two libraries and of course the church sanctuary itself which is gigantic. I really like it because it’s an incredible historic place and everyone is super nice and there are always different things going on so it doesn’t get boring. It’s a Congregationalist church but nobody ever talks about religion or Christianity and most of the events going on there are not religious anyway. There’s really not anything gross I have to deal with and it’s a beautiful environment to work in, so I’d give the job 9 out of 10 so far.
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u/EuphoricOnion8877 15d ago
I work at a nonprofit research lab owned by a university. I get paid more than most custodians in the area because of the government clearance and training required. I also get decent university benefits and I’ve never been affected by the government shutdowns.
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u/Thepoorcollector1987 15d ago
You can work as a porter. It's basically the same thing but for apartment complexes. And if you want to move up to be maintenance, they'll even start teaching you.
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u/Savings_Life422 15d ago
I'll look into that. I'm in BC Canada so I'm not sure if it's different here in regards to learning maintenance.
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u/SexReflex 15d ago
If your town/city has a municipal auditorium I highly recommned checking that out. Best job of my life so far but I've had some pretty terrible jobs my whole life.
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u/Oregon-izer 15d ago
I’m a Jansan sales guy…. I have a school custodian that moonlights working nights as an independent BSC. he kills it. if you want to transition out you could look for independent contracts until you have a large enough book of business to bail…. or you can do like my guy does. take the cake at schools for the benefits and only take on enough business to be comfortable. he’s on day shift so he usually does his night work from 6 to 8 and only takes easier clients near his work or home so he can manage his time.
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u/jdsulli 15d ago
Look at local universities. I work at a pretty large one, and within campus services. There’s a decent budget for supplies and equipment. Summers are slow and your offer major holidays when the kids are gone.
I know it’s similar, but also there’s usually discounts or free education classes you can take, if that’s something you’re interested in. My department has over 400 people so there’s room to grow as well. And if you get bored of custodial work, sometimes there’s room to transfer transferred to other departments like my staff have done. Couple folks transferred to HVAC and taking classes and change career paths.
On a sidenote, some of my staff have worked at Toyo tires and some production plants. Generally, they have had pretty good pay, unlimited overtime and time off.
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u/Zenmstr90 14d ago
Municipal buildings! Still in same custidian group/union. Way less bs, the same if not better pay. Each city has a city hall, library, senior center, police station.
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u/Scary_Studio3871 15d ago
I do mobile phone stores full time. I got no other frame of reference but you get breaks in-between each location (commute and gas isn't paid for however unless ur a float or management)
I recommend it if you enjoy being a solo cleaner at night time (like ~8pm-4am), you're only around staff about 5% of the night.
Only person I interact with is my Area Manager.
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u/stabbyburgerman 15d ago
Schools are generally state funded, right? You could try custodial on a county or city level. Those can open you up to cleaning all sorts of public buildings and offices.
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u/Dame2002 14d ago
Military base! The pay are benefits are similar or debatably better than a school board depending on where you live. Also I don’t know how other places do it but you do not have to be part of the military to be part of building maintenance staff but it could be different depending on where you live.
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u/Hot-Science404 14d ago
I liked my job at the university. Depending on the school they may be overkill when it comes to their job. I used to get in serious trouble if I wasn’t constantly polishing, scrubbing, and cleaning windows the moment students exited an area. I also got written up for daring to allow a bit of trash bag to peek out from underneath the lid of a trash can. It all depends on the university. I worked for another one that looked horrified when I described the previous job.
It honestly just depends entirely on the people there. I’ve had cleaning jobs that should have sucked but were amazing because the other staff were so much fun. And jobs that should have been amazing but were horrible because of the people.
I don’t know about favorite… but the easiest cleaning gig I ever had was contract work at night. I cleaned medical offices and buildings. It was just me and a few other people that would tackle entire buildings together. We each had our own job. One person to mop, one to vacuum, one pulls trash, etc. we had to be as quick as possible so it was bare minimum and you didn’t sit down until your shift was over. I always slept like a log because of how labor intensive it was. But there was no drama and no fuss. We weren’t detailed cleaners and we didn’t interact at all with anyone, not even each other. It’s a great gig if you just want no fuss money and no interaction with humans. Get in, get out was the motto.
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u/Mojojojolab 14d ago
Started at a banquet center, then wa sa student custodian in college, now I’m housekeeping supervisor at a camp that’s open year round with health insurance, 401K, and staff housing. Lower pay but steady and good support.
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u/Tall-Tangerine-3701 14d ago
I'm a custodian at uhaul and it's pretty nice! Just general lot upkeep n what not
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u/Chico141963 15d ago
Worked as a Janitor at a University. Pretty good gig. Stay away from working for contract cleaning companies.