Window Washing : More Fun (RISKY) in the Philippines…

I kid you not, he was hanging on a rope. We did a double take, thinking something drastic had just taken place… But he was just cleaning the glass, Filipino style. One guy tied with a hemp rope, three guys on the ground watching him, hoping he would be fine. The three pulled and held onto the rope while the windows were washed. A bucket filled with water was hanging nearby. Trapo or cloth rag was the “squegee of choice” except that it fell after just a few wipes…

The cloth rag got caught on the wires below… so he was lowered, THEN stepped on what could have been a high-tension wire, so he could retrieve the rag. AAACCKKK!! Drives me nuts to see things like this. Aren’t there safety regulations that apply to these kinds of situations? Yipes. Yes, I am back in the Philippines now… just swamped with other commitments. More posts coming soon. :)

Photos by CoS.

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44 Responses

  1. nakakatakot naman. welcome back market man is their any government regulation about this kid of job?

  2. Welcome welcome back Marketman! Hope you’re back with a renewed spirit. The 4 comments before the very last of your previous post made me laugh to myself…a common sentiment among us most probably hehe

  3. I think most of contractors or their employers don’t care much about this things, as long as these people are able to do their jobs…which is sad. Safety is probably(surely) not the priority of such acts.

    It makes me remember of a certain “6 star” hotel in Pasay where most of the guys cleaning the building’s glass facade are literally clinging for their lives and are supposedly supported by some “safety” ropes. The building was freakishly high enough to kill a person due to a fall. Do these guys have insurance? Why won’t the company/contractor use those platforms commonly used in cleaning the facade of buildings? Are they merely showing their acrobatic skill while doing their jobs? Could this be another problem that stemmed from the deep rooted culture of the Filipinos?

  4. I also wondered if there is Safety Law. I used to get scared for construction workers in a high-rise who don’t seem to wear protective gear and are not attached to a line when they’re working on the edge.

  5. Like the Governator, MM is back. Thanks!!! You didn’t leave us dangling like that poor window washer hanging on a rope.

  6. welcome back MM! yehey! aside from reading the archive articles got new posts now.

    oh my gosh this is something that is literally unsafe, the Bureau of Working Conditions (under DOLE) should take a look at companies, clients who allow this kind of work. tsk, tsk, so risky.

  7. Very high probability he doesn’t have insurance too or any safety training for that matter.

    Welcome Back! I was wondering why it was so quiet here :)

  8. Welcome back MM, I hope your vacation was good. Yes, having spent 20+ yrs in the military we were always taught safety and operational risk management…so having been in the Philippines for only 6 months now the things I see on a daily basis scare the heck out of me. ie, just like the window washer, or the guy that was building my fence using a arc welder with two extension cords attached to each other in the rain! but hey…It is more fun in the Philippines! again…welcome back MM!

  9. MM, this must have been both exciting and terrifying to watch! I remember being stuck in traffic on EDSA and watching two maintenance guys repairing something near the Santolan station. One of them was astride the other’s shoulders so they could reach the control box. Wala bang ladder man lang? Haay. It’s more fun in the Philippines.

  10. scott, I once asked an electrician if a wall outlet was 110 or 220V and he stuck his finger in the plug, winced a little and said “Sir, it’s 110V!”…hahaha. I KID YOU NOT. Outrageous. Or the gas guy who Mrs. MM asked to check our LPG gas lines to the stove for a leak and he lighted his lighter and passed it near the pipe to find the leak! Of course the safe way to do it is to soap up a sponge and wipe the lines and see if any area bubbles up… Needless to say, we all left the kitchen while he was doing his thing… :)

  11. Ha ha ha! an electrifying hair raising post after the hiatus!
    The mornings are better now, welcome back MM!

  12. Welcome back MM!

    It takes a special character to like heights and with minimal safety implements as well – LOL. Look at it this way – he loves that sport but rather than paying for it, he is being paid for it!

    I heard that a lot of the hi-rise window cleaners here in Melbourne are avid rock climbers getting paid for their adrenalin rush – talk about day jobs!

  13. Whenever I pass by window washers doing a Spiderman in Ortigas holding on to dear life by a thin hemp rope, I wonder if it’s even ever worth it to risk life and limb for minimum wage. Even if I got paid P1k per hour washing windows, I still won’t do it!

  14. there was an instance last 2 weekends ago in makati where those window cleaners were smashed back by the strong winds while doing their job and broke some glasses. unfortunately some debris fall on a taxi that was parked below and it destroys his windshield….

  15. Hi MM, welcome back. It sure makes a market maniac day knowing that The MM is back posting on his blog.

  16. welcome back, sir. i’ve just begin to read some of your posts and i can truly say that i am now a follower.

    there are laws already in our country re safety measures of employees especially those in specialized and hazardous working conditions. however, the implementation of such laws are close to nil. these erring employers can get away with it because no complaints are filed against them. and the only time that these employers are brought to the limelight is when something bad or catastrophic happens to their employees (remember the 4 individuals – a father, his 2 sons and their friend who died in a septic tank in a mall in quezon city) also, people who are seeking employment usually do not put a high premium to their safety as long as they have work. am not saying that they are not concerned with their safety it’s just that between safety and food on the table, the latter always win hands down. this is the sad truth in our country.

  17. MM, the gas man sounds like a Darwin award…while funny, still scary! thank goodness nothing did happen. I am not a subject matter expert..but just curious if the Philippines has anything like a OSHA program in the states?

  18. Welcome back MM, hope that the short hiatus has recharged your creative cooking and writing juices!
    You have been truly missed by your regular readers :-)

  19. Hello,

    Its not unique to Philippines, my office building here in Brisbane,QLD also gets cleaned by guys hanging on the side of the build using what looks like climbing gears and hanging on the side of the building. Their safety gears might be much better though and get paid a lot!

  20. I would be scared s***less if I had to do that! Walking through hanging bridges in parks rattle me enough! That rope trick looks like an accident waiting to happen. :(

  21. Welcome back, Marketman! What a way to come back to blogging – a cliffhanger piece! :) I also see a lot of window washers here in my part of China without any safety gears and I always say a prayer for them. It looks and it IS very dangerous indeed!

  22. Hi. Can you help me find contractors who does this glass cleaning? Im badly in need one.
    Thanks!

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