Job market information
Finding out about laundry and dry cleaning
The laundry and dry‐cleaning industry is part of the fashion and textiles sector, represented by Creative Skillset, which also includes: apparel; textiles; and footwear and leather; advertising; animation; computer games; facilities; film; interactive media; photo imaging; publishing; radio; and television. The fashion and textiles sector as a whole employs an estimated 340,000 people across 79,000 enterprises, which are predominately small and medium sized employers. The sector contributes around £10 billion to the UK economy each year, but due to the current economic downturn, product exports have fallen. However, employment in the sector has remained relatively stable level.
The laundry industry includes: dry‐cleaning services; laundry services; textile rental; and clothing repair and alteration. In the current economic climate, commercial laundries are reporting their best year ever, while customer‐facing, high‐street laundries are not doing so well.
Key facts:
- The industry contributes £1.1 billion to the UK economy each year.
- There are around 13,000 enterprises in the textile services industry, of which 11,000 are sole traders.
- Most of these businesses are small, employing 250 people or fewer.
- There are around 50,000 people employed in this industry in the UK.
Jobs in the industry include: laundry operative, dry‐cleaning operative, presser, branch assistant, repair/alteration hand, machine maintenance technician, laundry engineer and production manager.
Entry and progression
There are not usually any formal entry requirements for lower‐level jobs in the laundry and dry‐cleaning industry. Employers look for candidates who are good with their hands, reliable and willing to learn. Many jobs will provide training in the workplace, sometimes alongside formal vocational qualifications like NVQs or the Q Star awards from the Guild of Cleaners and Launderers.
The fashion and textiles sector has a track record of recruiting adults who are looking for career change. Many skills needed in the industry are transferable. Those with previous management experience would be able to transfer their skills to supervisory posts within this sector. Those with knowledge of sewing could also begin a second career as a clothing alteration hand.
Progression is usually possible with the appropriate levels of experience or by obtaining relevant qualifications. A typical laundry and dry‐cleaning progression route could be from a laundry operative to a laundry manager.
There is a range of industry endorsed courses (both at undergraduate and post‐graduate) and foundation degrees, apprenticeships and training schemes.
For job specific entry requirements, take a look at our job profiles.
Workforce statistics
| Number of UK employees: |
50,000 |
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| Number of UK employers: |
13,000 |
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| Gender: |
the workforce is evenly split between men and women |
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| Age: |
The fashion and textile sector as a whole has an ageing workforce, with 32% of those employed aged 50 years or over, compared with 26% in the wider economy. |
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| Ethnicity: |
The fashion and textiles sector as a whole is a major source of employment for people from ethnic minority groups. |
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Employment trends and future prospects
The laundry and dry‐cleaning industry operates in a market which is highly dependent on the strength of the general economy. Therefore, there could be a slight decline in the number of people employed in this industry over the next few years.
The laundry and dry‐cleaning industry anticipates a continued growth in terms of employment within the healthcare and corporate sector. Workers who are willing to have a sustained career in this sector and undertake relevant training are highly sought after.
Skill requirements and shortages
There is a shortage of applicants in the customer‐facing roles of the industry. There is also a need for appropriately skilled engineers. Workers in this area often need to be multi‐skilled in a variety of different areas.
Skills shortages can usually be addressed with relevant on‐the‐job training, but there is a shortage of workers within the customer‐facing roles. The following skill gaps have been identified:
- maintenance engineering
- dry‐cleaning operation work including spot stain removal
- multi‐skilling
- working within strict regulations and conforming to health and safety guidelines
- maximising productivity through people and process management
The majority of UK companies report difficulties in finding applicants with the right skills for jobs in maintenance engineering, laundry and dry‐cleaning operations, and clothing alteration.
Occupational trends
Vacancies in the industry are dominated by laundry and dry‐cleaning roles, making this job area the second most popular across the industry.
National and regional data
This industry is fairly evenly spread across the UK. The greatest concentrations of activity are in urban areas, including parts of London and major cities such as Leeds, Birmingham and Liverpool.
East Midlands – There are more than 5,000 people employed within the industry in the East Midlands. The majority of the workforce is based in Leicester.
East of England – There are almost 7,000 people employed within the industry, making it the third largest region. Tendring in Essex and South Cambridgeshire have the largest workforces.
London – There are almost 8,000 people employed within the industry, making it the second largest region for laundry and dry cleaning in the UK. Merton has the largest workforce, followed by Lambeth and Ealing. Employment is fairly evenly distributed throughout the remaining districts in London.
North East – There are almost 2,000 people employed within the industry, which represents the smallest proportion of the total UK employment in this industry. County Durham and Newcastle have the largest number of people employed in the industry. Employment is fairly evenly distributed throughout the remaining districts.
North West – There are over 5,000 people employed within the industry in the North West. Tameside has the largest workforce, followed by Lancaster and Chorley.
South East – There are over 9,000 people employed within the industry. The workforce is fairly evenly distributed across the sector, but Medway (Kent) and Reading have slightly higher numbers.
South West – There are almost 4,000 people employed within the industry, with almost half working in North Dorset.
West Midlands – There are more than 3,000 people employed within the industry, who are mainly located in Sandwell and Birmingham.
Yorkshire and the Humber – There are over 3,000 people employed within the industry. The workforce is concentrated in Calderdale, Leeds, Sheffield and Wakefield.
[N.B. Data derived from Annual Business Inquiry, 2007.]
Salary levels
Some suggested salary ranges for those working in the industry include:
- Entry Level Worker, such as a Laundry Operative – £10,000 to £12,000
- Multi‐Skilled Worker, such a Repair/Alteration Hand – £14,000
- Experienced/Management Workers, such as a Laundry Manager – £28,000 to £35,000
Career paths
Further sources
Produced Sept 2010, using Skillfast UK AACS LMI report (Jun 2010)
