I try to never ever use the word "refactor" or "clean up" in any of my work items or even commit messages. My boss and other teams I am collaborating with are like clients to me. Restaurant bills typically do not include explicit line items for "dish washing, mopping, grease-trap cleaning, oil disposal, etc."
The downside is that other people/teams can appear to work much faster and put you at a disadvantage or even risk of being let go due to this perception. Unfortunately this is where IMO you have to play the game and make sure you toot your own horn to the right people sometimes.
The downside is that other people/teams can appear to work much faster and put you at a disadvantage or even risk of being let go due to this perception. Unfortunately this is where IMO you have to play the game and make sure you toot your own horn to the right people sometimes.