DUBAI // At Ibn Battuta Mall, workers say battling the heat comes secondary to persuading customers to get their cars washed.
“The heat is becoming more difficult but what can we do?” shrugged a washer as he tried to drum up custom.
The Indian, who did not wish to be identified, said much of the day was spent trying to get customers to use the service they provided.
“It’s very quiet during the day and maybe we get three or four customers, if we’re lucky,” he said.
He works with a team of 10 and charges Dh12 to clean a vehicle but his salary is not based on commission.
“We probably make about Dh50 a day and all of that goes to the company,” he said.
“The evenings are better and we get more customers but, during the week, it’s not that good and, in the summer months, it gets very quiet,” he said.
It was a similar scene at Mall of the Emirates, where car washers work in pairs dotted around the mall’s multi-storey car park.
“It takes 10 to 15 minutes to clean a car and it’s hard work because you have to note which cars you have done and make sure you get paid,” said an Indian car washer.
His company charges Dh18 per car and although they, too, are not on commission, they do get a more generous salary of Dh4,300, he said.
“There is about 160 of us working here because the mall is so busy but it’s hard work and you’re always rushed off your feet,” he added.
“We work a 10-hour day and a lot of that is trying to find customers.
“It’s hard in this heat but we have to do it.”
nhanif@thenational.ae
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For more on the UAE’s car washers:
The National speaks to the unsung heroes who wash the nation’s cars at malls up and down the country.
■ Special report: Stories from the UAE's car washers
■ Helping family at home gives Abu Dhabi Mall car washers drive to earn more
■ Heat and humidity means task takes double the time, UAE car washers say
■ Mushrif Mall car washers fear effects of chemicals on their skin
