Business Owner's Responsibility to Cleanliness
Commercial buildings will offer services and products to customers as employees will provide their expertise in their work. These buildings will also have other supportive departments, such as maintenance workers, mail personnel and warehouse staff to support their operations. Due to the number of workers and customers who enter the building, carpets and floors can become dirty due to foot traffic, waste baskets can become overflowed with refuse, and surfaces touched by people can become covered with germs. This situation leads to the spread of bacteria that can cause health issues to workers and employees.
Cleanliness Responsibilities
A business owner is responsible for the disinfection and cleaning of all surfaces to mitigate the spread of bacteria and germs that lead to infectious illnesses or diseases. The level of cleaning will be dependent on operations. Some operations, such as food service industries, require following stringent cleaning guidelines established by the company as well as local, state and federal governments. Other companies will simply have cleaning procedures set up by the business owner.
Company policies may set guidelines that a regular cleaning schedule will be done after normal business hours or periodically during the day. They may also require deep-cleaning work to be done every few days, every few weeks or on a monthly schedule. Cleaning policies may change based on slow and busy working periods.
As a business owner, it is your responsibility to inform all employees in every department regarding the cleaning policies that are set forth. This factor ensures that everyone is taking a proactive approach in keeping workspaces, bathrooms and other areas of the building clean and uncluttered. In addition, with employees helping to minimize the amount of clutter and trash in offices, this aspect helps cleaning and maintenance staff to complete their work more efficiently.
Cleaning Staff
In-house cleaning staff will need to be fully informed regarding policy procedures when disinfecting and cleaning the building. They should also understand the cleaning schedule and be available to take work orders throughout the day in case there are cleaning emergencies. Some building operations may be too small to have in-house janitorial staff. In these circumstances, hiring an outside company may be more ideal.
Outside janitorial and cleaning staff may be hired on a regular basis, as a business owner can establish a contract and cleaning schedule that will be followed throughout the year. A company may hire a company to perform a one-time cleaning for its building due to particular circumstances, such as after construction renovations or remodels, if there was a natural disaster that caused damage, or during special events held in the office.
When hiring outside cleaning services, a business owner should ask about the procedures that are taken in the office as well as how staff will perform cleaning to certain equipment. They should also allow the cleaning work to be supervised and inspected to ensure your satisfaction. As a business owner, you want to hire a cleaning company that is responsible and can respond in a timely manner to any of your concerns.
For more information about building cleaning work, contact Noble Building Services.