Every winter, office workers brace for the inevitable: cold and flu season. It seems like every few weeks, a new bug – colds, flu, sore throats, stuffy noses – makes its way around the office, sending almost everyone home for at least a day or two. As a result, productivity drops every winter as more people take sick days. Of course, you don’t want the germs to spread, but there must be a way to keep your office clean.
Follow these simple tips for getting rid of office germs and keeping your office healthy and productive in between professional office cleaning services.
Wipe down commonly handled surfaces
Some people think the dirtiest place in the office is the toilet seats, but that’s just not true. The truth is that the dirtiest places in an office are actually the places most frequently touched and handled. Think coffee pot handles, door knobs, and breakroom countertops. Employees don’t usually think to wipe their hands after touching these surfaces, and as a result, germs spread fast.
To combat these office germs, make sure you have plenty of disinfecting wipes available to employees. They can easily wipe down these surfaces themselves after they use them. Your cleaning staff can also run a wipe over a coffee pot or microwave to quickly clean these surfaces several times a day. A professional office cleaning service in Maryland will go over these surfaces, but you should be going over them too.
Desks can also be hotspots for germs – especially if your employees sit close together. Employees can use disinfectant wipes to clean their mice and keyboards as well as their desktops. If one employee is sick, doing this will help stop the spread of germs.
Have wellness products readily available
When you pass your employees’ desks, how many of them have tissue paper? Do any of them have hand sanitizer? Part of containing germs comes from giving your staff the right tools to combat them. The more preventative measures you take, the less likely you’ll be to see an outbreak of the flu in your office.
Before winter even starts, stock up on these supplies. Make sure you have plenty of tissue boxes on hand and plenty of hand sanitizer. You can also install hand sanitizer stations outside bathrooms and in the breakrooms. This is an easy way to encourage employees to wash their hands before eating and touching common surfaces.
Schedule regular cleanings
Though the above steps will help keep your office healthy, the best way to really knock out germs is to have your office professionally cleaned regularly.
A professional office cleaning in Maryland will go through your office and clean it thoroughly. They will dust every surface – even your ceiling fans – and they’ll scrub and vacuum all of your floors. Your bathrooms and breakrooms will also be scrubbed down with disinfectant. Depending on how many people you have in the office, you may want to schedule commercial cleaning services more often.
For smaller offices, a good cleaning once a month may suffice, but if you have a large staff, hiring a commercial cleaning company every week may be best. This will also give you a chance to regularly stock up on essentials like bath tissue and paper towels.
Share with us: how will you keep your office healthy?
