How To Protect Your Staff From Covid-19 & The Flu In Fall 2020

Flu Season’s Coming: How To Win The War On Germs In Your Office

It happens every year. With the start of fall, it circles and inevitably creeps in as if to the tune of Jaws.

Duuh nuh. Duuh nuh. Duh nuh nuh nuh nuh nuhh…THE FLU.

But ladies and gentlemen, you don’t need a bigger boat to combat the illness this year. You need a well-armed janitorial crew and your battle tactic has to be strong. This year, we’re all fighting on two fronts:

If the Flu is a great white shark, Covid-19 is the Megaladon. With such adversaries, it’s a daunting task to keep your DMV office illness-free, but rest assured! With the right protocols and janitorial regimen, you can keep these viruses at bay.

Establish Workplace Protocol

The best way to keep your employees from contracting an illness. Yup. Social distancing. It’s effective to avoid all illnesses, not just Covid-19. With two viruses circulating, you must impress upon your staff the importance of it. Setting up a plan to enforce social distancing is going to be your first step. Here are your options:

1. Have all employees continue to work from home.This is the most effective way to ensure that illness does not spread among your staff. However, it means that you’ll lose valuable in-person communication that brings undeniable productivity.
2. Have employees follow a hybrid schedule like many school districts. This means that, for example, on Monday Team A works in the office, while Team B works from home. They then switch on Tuesday and so on. This is effective to limit the number of people, but it can put employees out of sorts having to constantly switch their work location.
3. Reconfigure your office for better social distancing. This is the BEST solution to getting all work done efficiently and keeping employees productive. Reconfiguring your office means that desks and cubicles are rearranged to meet a minimum of 6ft apart. If this furniture cannot be moved or poses a safety hazard by doing so, then you have two options:
   1. a. You can make a smart investment and update your desking/cubicle systems to newer, more flexible models. This will allow your workplace to easily adapt to the needs of social distancing and any other future circumstance.
   2. b. You can use other methods to protect your employees from physical proximity and airborne germs. A particularly effective method is using personal protection barriers and panels
4. If you elect to use option #2 or #3, then it’s important that you use appropriate social distancing signs, floor mats and decals to remind staff of correct behavior and distance.

Next, you want to ensure that your staff is following CDC recommended hygiene protocols. This means:

1. Enforcing the use of face masks at all times in the office
2. Setting up and using a hand sanitizer station
3. Taking everyone’s temperatures before allowing them to enter the office
4. Routinely washing hands
5. Wearing gloves
6. Using disposable utensils in the breakroom
7. Wiping down personal items and individual workstations with disinfectants

Benjamin highly recommends that employees have a “Covid-19 Kit” at their workstations to ensure that each one always has the materials they need to stay healthy and safe.

Use the Correct Cleaning Materials

Stepping up your janitorial efforts is every facility manager’s priority. By keeping your workplace clean, you kill germs and prevent the spread of infection. But it’s not as simple as it sounds. Some janitorial products kill germs, while others remove dirt and grease. The most effective cleaning regimen will incorporate an array of facility cleaning products. So what’s the clean difference between cleaning products, disinfectants and others?

Differences Between the 5 Main Janitorial Products

Not all janitorial products are the same. It’s important to use the right ones to ensure maximum workplace cleanliness.

1. All Purpose Cleaners: Don’t let the convenient phrase “all purpose” confuse you. This is a cleaner, not a germ killer. These products will remove dirt, stains, grease, etc. from a surface. Do NOT skip this step in your cleaning regimen to get straight to germ elimination. These products are your infantry, clearing the way for the rest of your germ killing troops.The following will be highly effective after you use cleaner. If you apply these first, their performance will surely drop.
2. Disinfectants: These products are designed to eliminate microorganisms including bacteria, viruses and fungi.
3. Sanitizer: Unlike disinfectants that are designed to eliminate most, if not all, germs on a surface, sanitizers work to lower the count by removing or killing microorganisms.
4. Antibacterial:These are effective in killing harmful bacteria.
5. Antimicrobial:These products minimize and prevent the growth of bacteria and germs on surfaces. It is most effective as a coating on everyday objects, like office supplies. For example, if employees share an antimicrobial stapler, there is less risk of contracting infection than if they used a normal stapler. This is because the undetectable coating prevents germs from growing on the stapler.

Benjamin’s Recommended Covid-19 & Flu Fighting Products

The following products have been chosen based on their effectiveness in the fight against germs. Several are trust worthy alternatives to the big brand names that might be low in stock or difficult to acquire. We assure you, that all of these will get the job done just as effectively, so your staff can work in a healthy and safe environment.