Never has it been so important to have a safe and clean work environment. It is a particularly good time to do a full assessment of your standard operating procedures for cleaning in your office to ensure a healthy and safe environment.
There is some anxiety from many, as we return, who are concerned about health and safety in the workplace. We have been essentially locked up for 16 months, and many are not so confident that COVID, and the new variants, are done with. This anxiety, which I have heard from many, has inspired me to help suggest some ways to put your employees at ease.
Below are just some questions you should begin asking yourself as you reopen your office and/or business in Calgary.
How often do we get our office cleaned?
When COVID hit, we saw many clients close temporarily, many reduce service (due to less traffic), and many increased services as they were still open. Quite a few of our essential service clients, who had to stay open, added on a full-time day porter, to ensure ongoing disinfecting throughout the day. Depending on how each client was affected, each client approached their cleaning needs differently.
Now that everyone is getting ready to reopen, cleaning needs to be top priority. For some, it may have been the last thing on their mind prior to COVID. Things have certainly changed. If you were getting your office cleaned once a week, for example, are you confident that only once a week is still sufficient? If you are not increasing your janitorial services, are your staff doing it themselves? Which leads me to my next question.
Should our staff clean/disinfect their workspace themselves?
As a janitorial company owner, it would be easy for me to say, “no,” your staff cannot clean their workspaces themselves. However, if your budget does not allow for a day porter, and/or extra services at night, you certainly could train your staff on the proper steps to disinfect and keep their workspace clean. In fact, we would be happy to assist with this and do a quick half hour seminar for your employees on how to disinfect their workspace. Just give us a call, and we can set up a time to provide this, value added, free service.
Does the cleaning company we are using understand the proper steps to disinfecting?
There are many cleaning companies out there, big, and small. Some know what they are doing and are properly disinfecting, some say they know, but do not, and some just have not made the effort to change, learn and adapt. It is important you understand which category your janitorial provider falls into.
Ask them questions that should help uncover which category your provider falls into. Questions like; Can you provide us your SDS sheets for the chemicals you use? What type of disinfectant chemical are you using? What are your disinfecting procedures? If they do not mention a multiple step procedure, including a dwell time and rinse, you may want to question them a little more, as that could raise a red flag.
What is our policy on handwashing?
If you do not have a policy for handwashing, we suggest you put one in place. Hand hygiene is the most important measure in preventing the transmission of microorganisms. Hand hygiene includes both washing the hands with plain or antimicrobial soap with water as well as non-rinse alcohol-based hand rubs. All employers should provide the following:
- Provides employees with the ability to wash their hands with soap and water or alcohol-based hand rub;
- Provides education to employees about how and when to wash their hands;
- Ensures that client hand hygiene is also supported and education is provided.
In Conclusion
These are just some of many questions you should begin asking yourself as you reopen. As a commercial cleaning company in Calgary, Alberta, we have had many of these conversations with our clients. Picture Perfect Cleaning has been rated by many as the top janitorial company in Calgary, and are considered by most the leading experts in the industry. If you are looking to learn more, reach out to us here.
