Laundry Assistant

Introduction

Laundry assistants sort, label, wash, dry, press and pack clothes. They may also operate machinery and equipment in a laundry.

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Work Activities

Laundry assistants operate the machinery used to wash, dry and press items brought in to a laundry to be cleaned. A laundry deals with fabrics that can be cleaned in water with soap or detergent. The laundry worker takes dirty items, puts them through the cleaning process and sends them back to the customer.

Dirty articles arrive at the laundry, usually in bags. The laundry assistants empty the bags and check the items against the customer's list.

The washing might have to be weighed before it is put into the washing machines. Then, once the machines are loaded the worker switches them to the right settings and turns them on. At the end of the wash programme the wet washing is loaded into dryers. In some laundries, all the sorting, weighing and loading for washing and drying is done by machines, so that the worker has only to check that the process is working smoothly.

Clean, dry washing is pressed, folded and packed. These processes may also be automated; but there is usually some ironing done by hand.

Laundry workers usually learn how to do all or most of the tasks in the laundry so that they can move from job to job, as the work load demands.

Those who suffer from allergies, breathing problems or skin complaints, should be aware that this work involves contact with chemicals and chemical fumes.

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Personal Qualities and Skills

You should be fit as you are on your feet most of the time and you may have to do heavy lifting.

You need to be friendly and helpful to customers.

As you will deal with lots of washing from many different customers you must be methodical and careful, so that items don't get mixed up.

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Pay and Opportunities

The pay rates given below are approximate.

Laundry assistants earn in the range of around £200 - £290 a week.

Laundry assistants normally work a basic 35-37 hour week, Monday to Friday, with occasional overtime. Part-time posts are common.

Industrial laundries tend to be in the larger towns. Other employers include hotel, hospital or prison service laundries.

Job vacancies are advertised in the local press and in Jobcentre Plus.

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Adult Opportunities

It is illegal for any organisation to set age limits for entry to employment, education or training, unless they can show there is a real need to have these limits.

Some entrants have relevant skills and abilities gained in areas that involve practical hand skills.

• 37% of people in occupations such as laundry assistant work part-time.
• 3% have flexible hours.
• 4% of employees work on a temporary basis.

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