During these strange times in the Covid-19 pandemic, there has never been a greater need for strong personal hygiene habits. This not only means that each of us needs to do our part in keeping our hands and personal spaces clean for ourselves and our friends and families but for others in our immediate workspace as well.
There are many extra cautions that we all need to be taking in the workplace to make sure that our coworkers, friends, and family are safe. Keep reading below for some of our top tips for maintaining hygiene in the workplace during Covid-19.
Educating your Team and Employees
First and foremost, you need to be educating and reminding your team about the severity of the situation, along with what they can do to protect and respect the health of themselves and other coworkers in the office.
You may need to have some safe meetings, adhering to the social distancing guidelines, to tell your team members your efforts and expectations for hygiene and keeping the workplace clean and safe. Since this pandemic has come with so many massive social shifts that are far different from our every day, set up posters and reminders around your office about what your team can be doing to keep themselves and their coworkers safe.
Make Hand Sanitizer Widely Available
If you can, you should make a hand sanitizer as widely available as you can. It has become a growing practice over the last decade or so to have hand sanitizer dispensers throughout offices and workplaces. Now more than ever, we can expect to see the number and use of hand sanitizer dispensers and machines rising. The CDC recommends that you have hand sanitizers that are at least 60% alcohol in order to be effective in killing bacteria and preventing the spread of viral agents as well.
Have Your Team Clean Their Workspace Daily
Another common hygiene practice that goes a long way is in making sure that each of your team members and employees is doing their part in keeping their personal space as clean as possible. This means making sure that they are regularly using adequate cleaning materials to
- Clean their hands.
- Wipe down their desk.
- Wipe down their keyboards and mice.
- Clean door handles of their office.
- Wipe down screens, pens, notebooks, monitors, etc.
Everyone in your organization or office doing their part to keep their personal space clean will significantly improve the overall cleanliness of your office and dramatically reduce the chances of spreading any germs, viruses and bacteria.
Restock Soap in Bathroom and Kitchen Areas
With the spread of the virus, everyone in the country is washing their hands more frequently than ever. This is a practice that needs to be implemented in the workplace as well. Individuals washing their hands more frequently throughout the day means that there are higher demands and needs for soap. Make sure that you stock and restock the soap in your bathrooms, kitchen areas and anywhere with a sink. Encourage your employees to wash their hands regularly, as this is one of the best ways to prevent the spread of viruses, germs and bacteria.
Make Cleaning Wipes Readily Available
Cleaning wipes are another effective way to keep germs and bacteria away. Encourage your staff to keep cleaning wipes or cleaning materials at their desk, and to wipe down surfaces, door handles and counters after they touch or come into contact with any of them. We recommend keeping them stocked in publicly used areas and under the sinks in your bathrooms and kitchens.
Keep Green Cleaning Products and Solutions Stocked
Using green cleaning products or solutions and making those available to your team is a great way to keep your office clean. We have seen that keep green cleaning supplies stocked, as opposed to traditional cleaning supplies and solutions, that team members and employees are far more likely to use them and clean up after themselves. Use green cleaning products and supplies to incentivize your team to do their part to keep your workplace clean and safe.
Wipe Down Furniture
This is a tip that can be easily overlooked in the midst of Covid-19. Furniture is something that is used on a daily basis but typically is not cleaned as often as counters, desks and bathrooms. Use your wipes and furniture-safe green cleaning solutions to wipe down your office furniture in public use rooms like lobbies, conference areas and breakrooms.
Wipe Down Counters and Public use Surfaces and Areas
This tip is something we cannot emphasize enough: you need to make sure your team is doing their part in keeping public use surfaces like desks, counters and tables clean. If multiple different people are using a surface or space throughout the day, they need to be cleaned daily.
Clean Bathrooms Regularly
Clean bathrooms are essential at all times, but especially during Covid-19. Bathrooms need to be cleaned daily to make sure that you keep you and your team safe. Hiring a professional total facility care or cleaning company like our team to clean them for you.
Encourage Anyone Who Feels Ill to Stay Home
One of the best strategies you can use to boost your company’s hygiene and keep your team safe is to focus on prevention. Make your team knows that anyone who feels sick needs to stay home. This is one of the best precautions you can take to curb the spread of germs, viruses and illnesses to keep your team safe.
