Building and Grounds Cleaning and Maintenance · Holland code RC

Janitors and Cleaners, Except Maids and Housekeeping Cleaners

Keep buildings in clean and orderly condition. Perform heavy cleaning duties, such as cleaning floors, shampooing rugs, washing walls and glass, and removing rubbish. Duties may include tending furnace and boiler, performing routine maintenance activities, notifying management of need for repairs, and cleaning snow or debris from sidewalk.

Also called: Cleaner, Custodial Worker, Custodian, Janitor, Building Custodian, Building Services Technician (Building Services Tech), Building Services Worker, Facilities Worker.

O*NET 37-2011.00

At a glance

US median annual pay: $36,840; Middle half earn $32,240 to $44,060. BLS OEWS, May 2025.
Most common education: High School Diploma or the equivalent (such as a GED); 62% of workers surveyed by O*NET report this level.
Preparation needed: Job Zone 3 of 5; Medium preparation. Zone 1 is little or none; zone 5 is graduate-level.
US employment outlook, 2024 to 2034: +2% · Slower than average; 2,447,700 jobs in 2024, projected 2,495,500. BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook, which groups this with similar roles as "Janitors and building cleaners".

What the work involves

The tasks workers in this occupation rate as most important, from the O*NET survey.

Service, clean, or supply restrooms.
Gather and empty trash.
Clean building floors by sweeping, mopping, scrubbing, or vacuuming.
Monitor building security and safety by performing tasks such as locking doors after operating hours or checking electrical appliance use to ensure that hazards are not created.
Notify managers concerning the need for major repairs or additions to building operating systems.
Follow procedures for the use of chemical cleaners and power equipment to prevent damage to floors and fixtures.
Mix water and detergents or acids in containers to prepare cleaning solutions, according to specifications.
Clean windows, glass partitions, or mirrors, using soapy water or other cleaners, sponges, or squeegees.

Skills and knowledge it leans on

Skills

Active Listening3.0 / 5
Speaking3.0 / 5
Critical Thinking2.8 / 5
Monitoring2.8 / 5
Active Learning2.6 / 5
Reading Comprehension2.5 / 5

Knowledge areas

Public Safety and Security3.4 / 5
Administration and Management3.1 / 5
English Language2.9 / 5
Customer and Personal Service2.7 / 5
Transportation2.3 / 5
Law and Government2.3 / 5

Importance ratings on O*NET’s 1 to 5 scale. Higher means the occupation depends on it more.

Who tends to enjoy it

How strongly this occupation draws on each of the six Holland interest types, which is the same profile the career interests test compares you against.

Realistic96
Investigative2
Artistic0
Social18
Enterprising11
Conventional60

The same work abroad

Other countries classify jobs differently, so these are the closest matches through the international ISCO-08 standard, not exact equivalents.

European occupation titles (ESCO)

building caretaker · DE Hauswart/Hauswartin · FR concierge
amusement park cleaner · DE Reinigungs- und Wartungskraft Freizeitpark · FR agent d’entretien de parc d’attractions/agente d’entretien de parc d’attractions
house sitter · DE Haussitter/Haussitterin · FR gardien de maison/gardienne de maison
verger · DE Küster/Küsterin · FR bedeau/bedelle
building exterior cleaner · DE Fassadenreiniger/Fassadenreinigerin · FR agent de nettoyage des extérieurs des bâtiments/agente de nettoyage des extérieurs des bâtiments
domestic cleaner · DE Reinigungskraft in Privathaushalt · FR aide ménager à domicile/aide ménagère à domicile

Closest UK occupation groups (SOC 2020)

Hospital porters (9262)25,200 employed
Window cleaners (9221)22,400 employed
Cleaners and domestics (9223)497,200 employed

Employment is the UK Annual Population Survey for April 2025 to March 2026, all workers in the group, which can be broader than this one occupation.

Japan

Japan classifies jobs in its own way. The closest category that names the same work is “ビル・建物清掃員”, which may be narrower or broader than this occupation.

Median monthly pay: ¥204,900; Middle half earn ¥177,200 to ¥241,600 a month.
Workers in the category: 144,900; Regular employees in firms of ten or more.

Scheduled monthly pay before tax, excluding overtime and bonuses, so it is not comparable to the annual figures above. Source: Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, Basic Survey on Wage Structure 2025, via e-Stat, under the Japanese Government Standard Terms of Use. The category match was made by hand.

Pay across Europe, for the whole group

Median annual earnings of all employees in “Service and sales workers”. This is the broad ISCO group this occupation falls in, not the occupation itself, so treat it as context for the wage level, not as a salary for this job.

Median annual earnings, Service and sales workers, by country
Country	Median pay
Belgium	€32,957
Sweden	€32,596
Netherlands	€29,198
Austria	€29,068
Germany	€27,471
Ireland	€26,978
Italy	€24,995
France	€24,971
Spain	€18,303
Portugal	€10,656
Poland	€7,579

Eurostat Structure of Earnings Survey, businesses with ten or more employees outside public administration, in euro and not adjusted for the cost of living. Reference years differ between sources: the US, Japan and Europe figures on this page come from different survey years, so compare them as rough levels, not to the euro or yen.

Exposure to AI

This occupation sits in the lower third of the 774 occupations scored, with an exposure score of -1.44. The scores are standardized across those occupations, so 0 is the average and a score of 1 is about one standard deviation above it.

Our note on reading it: the dataset links AI applications to the abilities that occupations require, so the score reflects overlap between the two. It is a comparison between occupations, not a forecast about jobs. It does not say whether exposure means tasks are replaced or workers get more done with the tools, and it says little about one employer or one role.

Source: Felten, E., Raj, M., & Seamans, R. (2021). Occupational, industry, and geographic exposure to artificial intelligence: A novel dataset and its potential uses. Strategic Management Journal, 42(12), 2195-2217. Matched to this page by 6-digit SOC code (37-2011).

Is it a fit for you?

Interest is one input, alongside ability, pay and what is hiring near you. The career interests test takes about thirteen minutes and ranks occupations by how closely their profile matches yours.

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