Hiring an on-site maintenance-person versus hiring services

We have just fired our current on-site maintenance-person for
drunkenness, non-performance of duties, etc.

I haven't thought well of the previous 2 maintenance-persons:
1 hung out with the bad element, the other spent most of his time
on side-jobs for individual owners.

I would like to hire contractors for the maintenance duties: one
to clean the grounds, another to landscape, a third for plumbing,
a fourth for electrical, etc.

Has anyone an opinion on how much this would cost, compared to paying
a salary to a jack-of-all-trades? How well it would work otherwise?

RussellB:

How big is your property?
How many units?
What types of repairs would this person or persons be performing?

IMO you had the wrong person rather than the wrong plan.

Does your maintenance man need to do electrical work or simply change bulbs and fixtures?

What types of plumbing issues would they face?

For our property a handyman-jack of all trades works fine.
If the project is to involved then we bring in a specialist.

I would suggest you review the types of issues this person would need to handle.
If that can be performed by a well rounded individual with multiple talents then perhaps you need to make a better search for more qualified and responsible candidates.

IMO to many "specialists" slow down progress and hinder getting a simple job done.

And as far as farming out the work to some head "contractor" that would then include an additional profit margin for them.

I would suggest you contact a temp. service through whom you can hire someone with the option of keeping them on or if they don't work out discontinuing their services.

If not review the actual skills this person would need and to what degree they are required and then search on your own and hold interviews for the person who properly fits your position.

We hired our property maintenance out for more than 20+ years.
Then we hired a maintenance man directly. Cut our costs in half and the money spent is much more productive. He can handle most electrical issues, plumbing, pool maintenance, painting, cleaning, landscaping, snow removal, plantings bushes and flowers, pool maintenance, etc. All in one person.

On our property rarely if ever do we need an electrician ( for simple electrical repairs) nor a licensed plumber for the types of repairs our maintenance man deals with. Then why pay for those services through a contractor?