Yesterday was Memorial Day and we still serviced routes like normal.In our business, we currently only fully observe:Independence DayThanksgivingChristmasNew Year’sEvery other holiday we typically continue operating unless it creates staffing or routing issues.One thing I’ve gone back and forth on over the years is how recurring businesses should handle skipped service days when holidays happen.For example:do you reschedule everybody?skip the service completely?provide credits?push routes forward/backward?absorb the operational hit internally?still charge because pricing is averaged across the year?For us, rescheduling entire routes can sometimes create more operational problems than just continuing service normally.Especially in route-based businesses where shifting one day affects the entire week.At the same time, customer expectations matter too.I’ve noticed residential customers and commercial customers also tend to view this differently.Our commercial accounts usually care more about consistency and keeping the property maintained.Some residential customers are more sensitive to skipped visits if they feel they are “missing” a service they paid for.

We handle it pretty similarly, but we do fully observe:Memorial DayLabor DayIndependence DayThanksgivingChristmasNew Year’sFor most holiday weeks, we reschedule the majority of recurring clients instead of just skipping them entirely. What’s helped a LOT is we start planning those holiday weeks at least a month in advance:limiting first-time cleansreducing less predictable workorganizing routes earlycommunicating with recurring clients ahead of timeThat gives us more flexibility without completely overwhelming crews or destroying route density for the week. Some clients do choose to skip instead of rescheduling, and we don’t charge a skip fee in those situations. We’ve found giving clients that flexibility creates a lot more goodwill long term.Holiday weeks are one of those things where operational reality matters more than having a “perfect” policy.Trying to force every single recurring appointment into an already compressed week can create:rushed cleaningsemployee burnoutlonger drive timesinconsistent service windowsquality issuesWe’ve learned it’s usually better to proactively control capacity that week instead of pretending it’s business as usual and dealing with chaos later.

We do it very differently as it is a day off for us here in Canada. We reschedule all the jobs about a month in advance, before we book all the spots. Then we contact the customers affected about 2 weeks prior and either reschedule the work or cancel.

How much push back do you get from clients when you try to reschedule?

Not really-depends how you look at it. For us scheduling is a big part of the job. We can either complain about it or just deal with it. We choose to deal with it. :) Can it be improved - of course. What we have now is working so we are sticking with it. :)

Rarely ever. What Covid thought me is that it is ok to bump a customer. When we book them and they want a Monday (exept Good Friday and Remembrance Day) we explain that if it falls on a stat holiday we will be in touch to reschedule.

How does your recurring service business handle holidays?

11 Replies

Homeownership
Contributor 4
4 days ago
One approach I've wondered about is leaning into the holiday instead of avoiding it. More people are home, which can make scheduling easier. If a customer wants holiday service, charge a holiday premium. Pass that extra amount directly to the crew working that day. The customer gets convenience and the team gets rewarded for giving up part of their holiday.
GrimeHunters
Contributor 2
10 days ago
We're a small company, so it's a bit easier to manage holidays ahead of time in case we want to spend those days with family and friends. With that said, I worked Memorial Day because my longest client had an STR booked ahead of time.
We don't always work major holidays such as Christmas, Thanksgiving, New Years or Independence Day. However, if a client has a special request I am always willing to help.
I do charge a premium for such occasions and it is always discussed beforehand. When these jobs do come up which are rare, they are usually only from big clients I have long standing agreements with.
Most of the time, we have things scheduled out so there's no overlap and things generally run very smooth.
- AnthonySalazar
  Jobber Ambassador
  6 days ago
  The most important part is charging the premium! The only people who will remember that you worked Holidays are your family and children. Most clients will not care if you did.
  - GrimeHunters
    Contributor 2
    5 days ago
    Yes! I absolutely agree! One thing I forgot to add is that I would never ask our employees to work on major holidays for this exact reason.
    As the owner, when these rare jobs come up I take care of them myself. My small crew works hard enough during business hours and they deserve holidays and downtime with their family and friends.
    Fortunately, my clients fully understand and agree so these jobs are few and far apart. It works out in the end.
Jesse1983Harris
Contributor 2
10 days ago
With my business being part time right now, my customers are pretty flexible going into the transaction. They know that I can only do nights and weekends. However, when it comes to holidays I either just don’t schedule them over the holiday or I check with my wife first if it is one we typically don’t do much on.
judithvirag
Builder 1
12 days ago
We do it very differently as it is a day off for us here in Canada. We reschedule all the jobs about a month in advance, before we book all the spots. Then we contact the customers affected about 2 weeks prior and either reschedule the work or cancel.
- AnthonySalazar
  Jobber Ambassador
  10 days ago
  Do you ever find it becomes a logistical nightmare when you reschedule?
  - judithvirag
    Builder 1
    10 days ago
    Not really-depends how you look at it. For us scheduling is a big part of the job. We can either complain about it or just deal with it. We choose to deal with it. :) Can it be improved - of course. What we have now is working so we are sticking with it. :)
roselvaggio
Jobber Ambassador
12 days ago
We handle it pretty similarly, but we do fully observe:
Memorial Day
Labor Day
Independence Day
Thanksgiving
Christmas
New Year’s
For most holiday weeks, we reschedule the majority of recurring clients instead of just skipping them entirely. What’s helped a LOT is we start planning those holiday weeks at least a month in advance:
limiting first-time cleans
reducing less predictable work
organizing routes early
communicating with recurring clients ahead of time
That gives us more flexibility without completely overwhelming crews or destroying route density for the week. Some clients do choose to skip instead of rescheduling, and we don’t charge a skip fee in those situations. We’ve found giving clients that flexibility creates a lot more goodwill long term.
Holiday weeks are one of those things where operational reality matters more than having a “perfect” policy.
Trying to force every single recurring appointment into an already compressed week can create:
rushed cleanings
employee burnout
longer drive times
inconsistent service windows
quality issues
We’ve learned it’s usually better to proactively control capacity that week instead of pretending it’s business as usual and dealing with chaos later.
- AnthonySalazar
  Jobber Ambassador
  10 days ago
  How much push back do you get from clients when you try to reschedule?
  - judithvirag
    Builder 1
    10 days ago
    Rarely ever. What Covid thought me is that it is ok to bump a customer. When we book them and they want a Monday (exept Good Friday and Remembrance Day) we explain that if it falls on a stat holiday we will be in touch to reschedule.

Forum Discussion

How does your recurring service business handle holidays?