One thing we can be sure of when a celebrity purchases a new multi-million-pound home is that they won’t be the one cleaning it. They probably have state-of-the-art designer kitchens they seldom ever cook in, lawns they don’t mow, sheets they don’t change and washing machines they don’t know how to use, right?

That’s where celebrity housekeepers come in. Tasked with maintaining their private spaces and witnessing how the rich and famous live behind the scenes, these people are granted access that fans and reporters could only dream of.

Most celebrity staffers have to sign non-disclosure agreements and go through background checks before landing the job. They are often forced to work round the clock, are not always treated well and are expected to meet their employer’s most outlandish demands.

According to unchecked ‘sources’ on the internet, some of these alleged demands include that Ariana Grande has her bodyguard carry her around her house like a baby when she doesn’t feel like walking. Demi Moore insists on ‘perfect lighting’ in her house. Serena Williams gets her housekeepers to watch her matches and offer feedback (but it has to be praise). Ryan Gosling doesn’t stand when he pees. Jennifer Lopez is a bad payer. Miley Cyrus’s pets aren’t housetrained. Taylor Swift’s house is littered with cat memorabilia. Sandra Bullock likes to keep her curtains closed. And Naomi Campbell likes to have 25 candles in every room.

One anonymous housekeeper even remembers being asked to set up a filing system for a client under the categories, ‘types of murder weapons’, ‘easiest way to kill someone without being traced’ and ‘types of poisons’. Luckily, it turned out the client was a successful murder mystery writer.

‘Your cleaning lady knows everything about you – your desires, all your most well-hidden secrets, your temper, virtues, and defects,’ as celebrity housekeeper, Daysy Rodrigquez, puts it. She has worked with reality stars including Lisa Hochstein from The Real Housewives of Miami, who she says is ‘the most beautiful person inside and out’, as well as business tycoons and famous athletes.

Speaking to The Sun, Rodriguez said her worst experience was when a 28-year-old NBA star hired her to throw a 50-person party at his house, last minute, and never paid for it. ‘He only reimbursed me for the receipts,’ she added, ‘but refused to pay for my total concierge fee services.’

Far from uncommon, celebrity staff are often expected to work round the clock to appease their employers. Lady Gaga’s former assistant Jennifer O’Neill made claims that she worked a 24-hour day back in 2013 and was even expected to sleep in Gaga’s bed because the singer ‘didn’t sleep alone’. O’Neill eventually sued her for unpaid overtime and after a lengthy, dramatic court case the dispute was settled for an undisclosed amount. Yikes.

One of Gaga’s rebuttals was that her assistant worked an eight-hour day, but those hours were sometimes spread across 24 hours. Apparently, it’s not uncommon for celebrity staffers to be paid a flat salary while expected to work ‘flexible hours’ – otherwise known as all hours of the day.

Nor is it uncommon to hear about A-list stars degrading their staff. Basic Instinct actress Sharon Stone’s ex-housekeeper, Angelica Castillo, sued her for allegedly firing her after she injured her back unloading the actor’s groceries. Castillo also alleged that Sharon refused to look at her doctor’s notes and called her ‘crazy’ and ‘stupid’ for working slowly. Stone’s lawyer dismissed the claims as ‘bizarre and ridiculous’.

One year earlier, Stone was sued by her former nanny, Erlinda T. Elemen, for allegedly belittling her on the grounds of her ethnicity and violating labour laws. Stone told CNN, ‘This is a frivolous lawsuit for absurd claims that are made up and fabricated.’

In an episode of Keeping Up With The Kardashians in 2021, Kim Kardashian said her sister Kourtney Kardashian had a reputation for ‘degrading’ her staff. Apparently, Kourtney once shouted at her nanny after she told her son talking in the car was illegal. Kourtney denied yelling at her nanny but has had other nannies quit because of her children’s behaviour.

However, Kim’s not getting away scot-free. An anonymous former employee of Kim’s cosmetic brand, SKKN, didn’t have great things to say about her either. ‘There was a general expectation that people were so lucky to be working for [the Kardashian-Jenners] that they knew that they could treat people like crap,’ the employee said. ‘That was very obvious.’

In March 2022, Brandy’s former housekeeper, Maria Elizabeth Castaneda, sued the signer for $250,000 alleging that she was wrongfully fired for being ‘too old’ and that she was not paid for work she had already completed. Brandy’s lawyers claim that Castaneda quit voluntarily, and the case was settled for $40,000.

Dallas actor Victoria Principal, however, allegedly took things to another level. Principal’s former housekeeper, Maribel Banegas, sued her in 2008 after the actor allegedly pulled a gun on her after an argument. Principal responded by suing her back. The terms of the settlement were not made public, but TMZ reported that Banegas sent her former employer a letter to apologise.

Confronting your famous employer in any way takes guts, never mind those who do so in court. As Christopher Baker of Christopher Baker Staffing explained, ‘If an unhappy housekeeper works for an A-lister, I can’t present her to a new employer who may be in business with her old one. I need to be savvy of who’s doing what are where.’

Of course, the same is true of nannies. According to Katie Provinziano of Westside Nannies, it’s becoming increasingly difficult to source and place nannies in famous families. There are plenty of cases of business being mixed with pleasure, after all.

Lest we forget Jude Law who had an infamous affair with his children’s nanny in 2005 while he was engaged to Sienna Miller. Or Ethan Hawke who went on to marry Ryan Shawhughes, the former nanny for his and Uma Thurman’s children.

Gwen Stefani’s ex-husband Gavin Rossdale also had an alleged affair with their nanny, Mindy Mann, which ended their 13-year marriage. Jennifer Garner and Ben Affleck’s ten-year marriage supposedly suffered a similar fate. Garner told Vanity Fair that he slept with the family nanny, Christin Ouzounian, after they had already separated, but it still reflected ‘bad judgement’ on Affleck’s part.

It turns out working in a celebrity home comes with plenty of pitfalls – and surprisingly high stakes. At least some staff members learn how to make the most of it. ‘I know for a fact that some of my co-workers try on the clients’ clothes if they’re left alone in the house,’ an anonymous celebrity housekeeper admitted. ‘There’s just general snooping. If you leave important papers laying around, most of us are going to look.’

Celebrity employers take note: the next time you make a wild request, act inappropriately or ‘forget’ to pay overtime, your staff hold more power than you think.