Thank Your Cleaner Day has been celebrated around the world, with more than 20 countries taking part in the New Zealand-founded initiative.
Launched by the Building Service Contractors of New Zealand (BSCNZ), Thank Your Cleaner Day, supported by Kärcher, was held on Wednesday 16 October.
Now in its fifth year, the day aims to raise the profile of the industry as well as celebrate the role of professional cleaners.
Since its launch, the event has gained global attention, with Canada, US, UK, Spain, Mexico, Argentina, Chile and Colombia among some of the countries to have participated this year.
In New Zealand, the commercial cleaning sector is worth more than $1 billion annually and employs more than 30,000 people.
Sarah McBride said this year’s event was highly successful, with the initiative continuing to gain momentum year on year.
“Thousands of cleaners were thanked yesterday, and anyone who was lucky enough to attend Thank Your Cleaner Day events will know how grateful our cleaners are for the recognition of their hard work.
“I saw some incredible celebratory cakes, heard some wonderful speeches and engaged with many of our wonderful cleaners, I greatly appreciated the opportunity to thank them personally.
“I want to thank everyone who took the time to celebrate with our cleaners yesterday. Where would we be without them? It certainly doesn’t bear thinking about!
“Thank you again for your hard work, and we look forward to celebrating the day with you again in 2020.”
The country’s largest facilities management services company, OCS, encouraged its clients and all New Zealanders to take a moment to say thanks for the work cleaners do in airports, healthcare facilities, office blocks, schools, shopping malls, and a myriad of other places.
Managing director, Gareth Marriott, spent the day out and about with his cleaning crews. He personally thanked them for their dedication to keeping New Zealand clean, tidy and hygienic.
“People have no idea how involved the work is that our cleaners do. It’s not merely cleaning floors and toilets (although there’s plenty of that) it’s also about providing clients with sustainability measures, like waste reduction and recycling initiatives to divert rubbish from landfill. The teams are trained in chemical usage – ensuring jobs are cleaned to the highest degree without harm to people or the environment.
“Thank Your Cleaner Day isn’t about OCS or any other company, it’s about those unsung heroes of New Zealand that work hard across our country – from Tauranga, to Tawa, to Tuatepere and everywhere in between. They often work in isolation and late at night to keep our country running – imagine the chaos if we didn’t have cleaners!
“I still don’t think that our society, business and government leaders truly understand the value that the cleaning industry brings – and I’m not just referring to making places look clean! There’s the hygiene aspect, preventing the spread of infectious diseases and germs, and of course the value add to a visit – nobody would want to visit a shopping mall littered with rubbish and dirt on the floor.”
Auckland Airport used its super-sized George Bolt Memorial Drive billboard to publicly thank their cleaners, tertiary education clients (including Waikato, Massey and Victoria universities) organised morning teas and gifts, Waikato Police Acting District Commander presented their cleaner with flowers, and many others participated through morning and afternoon teas, pizza lunches, cards, chocolates and cupcakes.
Several well-known Australasian’s also provided video shout-outs to cleaners across the country, including the Mayor of Nelson, Rachel Reece, former Australian Governor General Sir Peter Cosgrove, wheelchair tennis champ, Dylan Alcott, along with British High Commissioner to NZ, Laura Clarke.
It’s #ThankYourCleanerDay so we’re celebrating our amazing OCS cleaners. They work hard day and night to keep our airport looking its best – a big thank you from all of us! pic.twitter.com/fAI1WI2Jei
— Christchurch Airport (@CHC_Airport) October 16, 2019
Today is official “thank your cleaner day”. They clean up after us but how often do we thank them for their hard work? #ThankYourCleanerDay Read more: https://t.co/HNfFcuApi1
— University of Otago (@otago) October 15, 2019
It’s Thank Your Cleaner Day! ???????????? pic.twitter.com/PMDeM3PCJw
— Auckland DHB (@Akld_DHB) October 16, 2019
On Thank Your Cleaner Day today, it’s time to stop and think about our cleaners and recognise the hard work that they do! Here we have (part of) our Dunedin cleaning team, thank you! #cleaners #thankful #appreciation pic.twitter.com/u81ae7AGjJ
— Southern DHB (@southernDHB) October 15, 2019
Thank Your Cleaner Day is coming up! On October 16th, don’t forget to say ‘thank you’ to the people who keep your commercial spaces clean every day! See our suggestions on https://t.co/HUuwXoGZSC #thankyourcleanerday #crewcarenz pic.twitter.com/otOGMExm1u
— Crewcare NZ (@CrewcareNZ) October 13, 2019
October 16 is officially #ThankYourCleanerDay when we all recognise those who work in the professional cleaning sector #cleaning #Thanks https://t.co/4HsNDGurOx How will you celebrate? pic.twitter.com/O3fNH0S8Mv
— European Cleaning (@EuroCleanJour) October 8, 2019
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