COVID-19 has become a major problem in almost all workplaces, making it increasingly difficult for regular employees to do their jobs safely. It has also meant that customers are more at risk no matter where they go, and that risk can lead to lost business, legal issues, or even PR problems for the business involved.
On top of all that, there is also the fact that COVID-19 presents a new challenge to a lot of office-based businesses – how do you handle a virus when there are so many employees all working in the same building, sometimes even in the same room?
Office Cleaning Under COVID
One of the biggest mistakes that a lot of business owners make is assuming that COVID-19 follows a strict set of rules. Like any virus, there is no guarantee that a certain amount of disinfectant will fully clean a specific surface, and particularly strong cases of the virus entering your office can be hard to deal with.
That being said, focusing on keeping the office clean and figuring out the most vulnerable areas can all be important. Once you have a rough idea of which rooms or surfaces are being touched the most – the ones that are most likely to spread COVID – you can get an understanding of what your business premises actually needs.
Commercial Cleaning Services
While getting employees to clean their offices can be a short-term solution, and having your own in-house cleaners can help a lot, it is often cheaper and more efficient to rely on commercial cleaning services instead. Commercial cleaners are hired from third-party companies, bringing their own equipment and cleaning substances with them.
In theory, this can seem like a more expensive option than simply handing out cleaning cloths and disinfectant sprays to each employee, but the benefits are definitely worth it. Not only are professional office cleaners very good at their job, but they are able to bring gear that your company may not be able to afford by itself.
Thanks to the extra equipment (and the fact that they are not one of your regular employees, so they do not have to keep track of other duties as well), good commercial cleaners are able to combat the spread of COVID-19 and other viruses very effectively.
Why Use Commercial Cleaners?
One of the biggest advantages of commercial cleaners is that they can focus on their job. They are not an existing employee, and they are not familiar with the offices, so they can dedicate their entire workday to cleaning and may notice things that regular employees will not.
Many of them will also be trained in proper cleaning methods, procedures, and other information that can help them pick out problem areas. For example, they might wipe down keyboards and door handles something that is easy to overlook in a busy office with a lot of employees.
Since they have specialist cleaning equipment, you can rely on cleaning services to tackle problems that your employees can’t handle themselves. Deep cleaning is a very effective way of completely removing infection risks from a space, but it also takes a lot of time, effort, and specific gear to perform effectively. If done wrong, it can leave traces of the virus behind.
Aren’t They Expensive?
As mentioned earlier, commercial cleaners are more expensive than simply trying to make your employees do the work. However, there are two major reasons that this extra cost is worth it, in a value-for-money sense.
The first is employee stress. An employee who has to worry about their own health and safety on top of regular duties can quickly become stressed. It pushes the blame onto employees that might be too overwhelmed to properly clean spaces or who have to leave their office uncleaned to attend urgent meetings.
The second is the level of cleaning skill involved. A regular employee can wipe down their equipment and disinfect their hands, but there are a lot of complex cleaning techniques that they will not be able to manage on their own. Some even require specific pieces of cleaning equipment, which they will not be able to use if your company does not have any of it spare.
Keep in mind that most cleaning companies bring their own gear. This means that commercial cleaning also eliminates the cost of having to buy your employees cleaning equipment, protective clothing, disinfectants, and anything else that they might need.
Confirmed Infections
COVID-19 can appear almost anywhere at any time and is often carried by people who do not appear to be sick. It is very possible that an employee can be in the middle of a workday when they test positive or that they end up displaying symptoms at complete random. They might also infect somebody else that does show signs of having the virus.
Once this happens, regular cleaning is not really an option. Deep cleaning is a major tool for dealing with not just office cleaning but warehouse, home, medical, and even school cleaning jobs. While these all demand specific tools or cleaning methods, they also follow the same basic structure – completely eradicate the virus before anybody is exposed to it.
This means that commercial cleaning services have a core advantage, compared to regular employees – they are prepared to expose themselves to COVID-19 or other unexpected hazards, have the tools and protective gear to stay safe while working and are capable of providing a complete clean that can make the space usable again.
Where Do I Start?
Finding good cleaning services is actually quite easy, but choosing one can seem hard at first. It is important to compare different details and the specific things that a cleaning company offers since the type of office you maintain might only require certain things to keep properly cleaned.
Take your time, think carefully about your premises, and make sure that you have identified any major risk areas like kitchens or shared break spaces. Even if you do not come up with a full cleaning plan, it can help to approach a company with a rough idea of what your business needs, especially if you want to get a quote or price estimation from them.
