Part of good hygiene in the office can be as simple as washing your hands, although you’d be surprised how few people know how to do this properly. Practising good hygiene in the office also involves making sure employees don’t leave a mess if they eat in the pantry, clearing up clutter in common areas and work areas, and making a strict policy of not eating at or leaving food at workstations.
While the ways of practicing good hygiene can be obvious, we discuss the not-so-obvious benefits of keeping your office clean.
It Makes a Good Impression
A clean office speaks volumes. If and when clients, job-seekers or other outsiders visit, they’ll perceive your office as a professional, productive workplace. It’s important that your office is clean both inside and out. An office with curb appeal but has a dingy, dirty interior will be seen as one of those companies to avoid. By maintaining office cleanliness, it shows that your organization is one that consistently values and maintains a professional image.
Employees Stay Happy & Focused
A clean office benefits the employees as well, since having dirt-free and uncluttered workstations result in boosted morale, workers stay focused, are less stressed, and waste less time sifting through clutter to get to needed paperwork. ; In a Harvard study, it was also discovered that a cluttered desk or office space can increase employees’ levels of stress and anxiety, and affect their ability to focus on their tasks.
Employees Will Take Fewer Sick Days
By keeping common areas, washrooms, conference rooms, pantries, and workstations clean, you dramatically cut the spread of bacteria, mold, and viruses. All these potential causes of illness can be in these areas, and they can trigger allergies or cause chronic conditions. With a clean office, employees avoid a long list of illnesses that are often likewise contagious. Note also that cluttered offices cause stress, and with stress come other ailments as well.
Productivity Will Increase
When employees stay happy, stay focused on their jobs, and get sick less often, productivity is bound to increase. That’s another excellent reason to maintain office tidiness and cleanliness.
Additional Cleaning Measures
Apart from hiring office cleaning services in Los Angeles, you can implement additional cleaning measures for your office workers to follow. Here are a few suggestions:
Have Spring Cleaning Days
At least once a month, make spring cleaning an office-wide activity to get everyone involved. This way, all departments get to chuck out the unnecessary paperwork, and clear out workspaces more efficiently. If everyone is involved, they’ll be more motivated as the cleaning up will be done in a friendlier, community-like atmosphere. You can make this a regular social event at the office, which may even become a fun and morale-boosting activity employees will look forward to .
Cut Down On Paper
Speaking of decluttering, you can make it a policy to use less paper. If possible, minimise or eliminate the need for printing out documents. Upload files on the cloud for viewing or editing, and use project management tools online. Meet with HR and your IT department, and see what tasks can be automated. Use less paper to cut down on office stress, costs, and clutter.
Place Hand Sanitiser Stations
To minimize the spread of bacteria and viruses, install hand sanitizer dispensers in high-traffic areas of the office. You can have them in the reception area, the pantry areas, and in each department. Hand sanitizer can be especially important in or close to the washroom, as well.
As you can see, there are several benefits to keeping the office clean and maintaining good hygiene. The most obvious benefits are that your company maintains a good image, no one gets seriously ill. Less-obvious benefits include improved productivity due to increased employee satisfaction, less stress, and less sick days taken as a result of a clutter- and dirt-free office.