Shirley Lam, Green Cleaning Worker Cooperative
Established in 2002, the Green Cleaning Worker Cooperative provides cleaning services to a number of domestic households and commercial premises.
Employees use environmentally friendly products and cleaning agents, many of which they have made them themselves. This prevents water pollution during the household cleaning practice.
They also share their knowledge with others who are interested in cleaning their home in an environmentally friendly way.
All employees have undergone environmentally friendly cleaning training, in-house and through a training course in the market.
The training course is provided by the Employees Retraining Board, and after training employees receive assistance from the Hong Kong Federation of Women’s Centres and Oxfam.
The satisfaction of the job and the friendship between colleagues are great support during hard times.
Progress
Locally in Hong Kong – GCWC has minimised the environmental impact during cleaning and educated clients and other interested parties on how to use more environmentally friendly cleaning agents.
The cost of environmentally friendly cleaning products is our most significant barrier, as some are more expensive than conventional ones. When the cleaning agents are made by employees, they source and produce the products themselves.
We have increased the general public’s awareness of environmentally friendly cleaning practices. We also organise talks and seminars for our clients, employees and others who may be interested, and participate in environmental festivals organised by different NGOs.
The organisation is environmentally sensitive as we update our cleaning practices by meeting with different NGOs (e.g. Greenpeace) and attending seminars.
