Minnesota High School Turning to Students for Janitorial Work

Blaine High School started an unusual work-study program in mid-January of 2023, The Star Tribune first reported. Students should be at least 16 years old and are paid $15.30 an hour, according to a job application posted by the district.

Schools throughout the country are having a hard time hiring essential employees such as substitute teachers, cafeteria workers, bus drivers, and janitors– positions historically known for low incomes and poor benefits.

When schools transitioned to virtual learning throughout the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, lots of workers left the industry for good. This has actually led some districts to offer signing bonuses of approximately $20,000 and hire parents to fill alternative positions.

Blaine High School’s student janitors do not clean restrooms or locker rooms and can take the bus home from work, Tom Karp, the assistant director of buildings and grounds, told the news outlet. Their primary responsibilities are sweeping, vacuuming, taking out the garbage, and disinfecting surfaces.

The absence of a commute opens the application to more youthful students who may not have a driver’s license, he added.

Record numbers of Americans have actually been quitting their job in search of better working conditions and the greater cleaning industry is no exception. Residential cleaning companies informed Insider they’re needing to refuse business and reschedule or perhaps cancel regular customers due to the fact that they can’t find adequate personnel.

“We’re trying everything we possibly can, but there’s also a limit as to what a small business can offer … There’s a fine line between getting employees and making enough profit to cover all your expenses,” Jonathan Bergstein, owner of Maid to Sparkle, told Insider in November.