Window cleaners' safety a concern in peak season

With the Spring Festival holiday approaching soon, demand for domestic services has begun to climb in recent weeks, particularly for housekeeping and window cleaning, as many Chinese families spruce up their homes for the Chinese New Year with the belief that a clean and tidy environment brings good luck.

The surge in demand for window cleaning services, however, has also raised concerns about worker safety, especially for those operating in high-rise buildings.

"Every time I see domestic workers leaning their upper bodies out of windows to clean the glass, I worry about their safety, let alone watching aerial cleaners hanging in the air to clean building exteriors," said Wang Zhaoge, a Beijing resident in her 30s.

Wang said it is her family's tradition to hire a domestic cleaner to wash windows ahead of Spring Festival each year, with prices typically ranging from 100 to 300 yuan ($14.30 to $43) per hour, depending on how early the service is booked.

"The earlier you book, such as one month before the festival, the lower the price," she said. "I remember paying 480 yuan for two hours of window cleaning last year because I booked only two weeks before the holiday. This year, it cost me 260 yuan for the same service."

Wang said she usually books cleaners through domestic service platforms such as 58 Daojia, adding that her biggest concern is not the cost but the workers' personal safety.

"Cleaners usually work alone, and every time they lean out of the window without any protective equipment, my husband reminds them to be careful," she said. "We live on the 18th floor, and it is frightening just to look down."

Data from 58 Daojia shows that domestic service orders on its platform rose 40 percent during the period leading up to the Spring Festival holiday of 2024, but declined in mid-February that year. Window cleaning orders surged by 200 percent over the same period. The platform did not release comparable figures for 2025.

Experts have also noted growing demand for window cleaning services ahead of Spring Festival, while voicing concerns about workers' safety and calling for stronger insurance coverage and labor rights protection in the event of disputes.

Yao Junchang, a lawyer at Beijing-based W&H Law Firm, said labor relations in the domestic services sector are often difficult to define, including for window cleaners.

"Some workers sign labor contracts with domestic service companies, and their rights should be protected by those companies," Yao said. "Others register on online platforms and take orders independently, while some take private jobs on their own. These workers face the highest risks and receive the least protection."

For high-rise window cleaning, Yao said employers are responsible for providing proper protective equipment. He added that such work carries elevated risks and that workers, companies and clients may all bear legal responsibility if workers sustain injuries on the job.

In June 2024, seven central government departments, including the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security and the National Development and Reform Commission, jointly issued guidelines to promote high-quality development of the domestic services industry.

The guidelines call on domestic service companies to better protect workers' rights and encourage them to provide commercial insurance, such as accidental injury insurance and employer liability insurance.

Local governments are also encouraged to offer subsidies to companies that purchase accidental injury insurance for their employees.