With many companies now bringing their employees back to the office environment, some people may assume that things are returning to “normal”, however, this isn’t exactly accurate.

Things aren’t anywhere near being back to how they were pre-COVID yet, and it’s important that as an employer, manager, or anyone else involved in the provision or management of workspaces such as offices, that you’re prepared and are taking all the right steps to maintain a hygienic office during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

Maintaining a hygienic office environment

Although there are many different types of workplace, all of which are different and come with their own unique COVID-specific challenges, the office environment is one that’s particularly at risk.

This is due to the fact that hundreds, if not thousands, of people can work in a single office building, which itself is an indoor space with several touchpoints and opportunities for contamination and infection.

Here are our tips on how you can maintain a hygienic office environment for your workers.

1. Have a look at the working environment

The best place to start is to look at the office environment and review how it functions and how people work and behave within the space. Consider things like which areas are the most communal, and which areas have the most touchpoints.

It’s also a good idea to consider how things like meetings, interviews, and working patterns are managed. Consider enforcing a policy whereby all meetings and interviews are carried out virtually. You could also consider reducing the number of people present in the office at any one time by staggering people’s working hours out.

2. Regularly sanitise and clean

No matter how you manage your employees’ working environment in the current COVID-dominated world, the best way to ensure that everyone is safe is to keep the work environment clean, sanitised, and tidy.

Cleaning the workspace frequently and thoroughly is a good start. You should focus especially on the areas that staff members will have physical contact with most, especially high-volume communal areas like kitchen areas, restrooms, and meeting spaces. Lots of office buildings have designated “COVID-safe” cleaning personnel who rotate around the building, sanitising communal areas and touchpoints.

You should also provide lots of hand sanitiser dispensers. Hand sanitiser is one of the most effective ways to protect your employees in a simple and cost-effective way. when you use automatic hand sanitiser dispensers and place them cleverly all around the office, you encourage staff members to regularly keep their hands clean.

3. Educate your staff members

Staying safe and upholding cleanliness and hygiene standards isn’t just your job—it’s everyone’s. By educating your staff members and teaching them how they can stay clean and safe in a COVID-compliant way, your efforts won’t be wasted.

Employees should be made aware of the steps that they should be taking to keep themselves and their colleagues safe. This can be achieved by formal training sessions, regular reminders through emails or memos, or simply by using signage and posters to prompt people to clean and sanitise their hands in key areas such as restrooms and communal kitchens.

Therefore, you should encourage your employees to clean and sanitise their own desks and workstations regularly. This is especially important if your office has a “hotdesking” or similar initiative whereby no one person is assigned their own personal desk or workspace.

Buy hand sanitising equipment for offices

Hand sanitising equipment is a must-have for any offices re-opening to and bringing their employees back in to work again. Without the right equipment, it’ll be difficult to be COVID-compliant and safe.

Luckily, there are lots of different options available when it comes to hand sanitiser dispensers. Both free-standing and wall-mounted solutions are available, and they come in various shapes and sizes, so you’ll always be able to find one that fits the amount of space you’ve got available.

Want to find out more about the range of automatic hand sanitiser dispensers and other products that we’ve got? Contact a HandStations representative today!