Why It’s Important to Wash Your Hands at Work
Washing your hands is an initiative that you can take to help protect your health and well-being, and stop germs from spreading to those around you. While you should always practice good hygiene and wash your hands regularly, it’s particularly important to take up regular hand washing in the workplace. Here’s why:
You’re Constantly Surrounded By People
The workplace is one of those places where you’re constantly surrounded by your coworkers, managers, and employees in a shared space. While this is a great environment for collaboration and teamwork, it’s also a great environment for spreading germs and viruses. It’s been discovered that 80% of common infections are spread by contact through the hands. This is pretty scary to think about considering how many hands you might shake with coworkers or clients in a day in a day, and how many documents and files are shared in the workplace.
You’ll Reduce Sick Days
If one of your employees makes it work while recovering or getting over an illness, there’s a high chance that it might spread to others. In turn, more employees will get sick and spread the germs even further. In that case, it’s better for your employees to stay home and rest to recover and avoid spreading infections to others. And to encourage everyone to protect themselves against illnesses and not have to take those days off in the first place, promote hand-washing. Reducing sick days will enhance productivity and efficiency in your workplace.
Bacteria Can Be Found in All Kinds of Places
Another reason why you should promote hand-washing in your workplace is important because bacteria can be found in all kinds of places — especially where you’re doing mechanical work. Bacteria can build up on keyboards, pens, mousepads, and in other areas that you wouldn’t think of, but regularly use. By washing your hands regularly, you can remove these germs from your skin and protect yourself from infections — or avoid contaminating these areas with germs in the first place.
How Can You Encourage Employees to Wash Hands?
Now that we’ve covered why it’s important to wash your hands in the workplace, it’s time to ask the next question: “How can you encourage others to wash their hands?” You can start by putting up posters reminding everyone to wash their hands (and pointing them in the direction of the washroom or a nearby sink) all over the office. Offer hand sanitizer to others as gifts, and put up sanitizing stations around the office.
Another effort that you can take to prevent the spread of germs and keep you and your employees healthy is to conduct regular maintenance of the workspace. By cleaning out the office regularly and consistently, you’ll be able to prevent germs from accumulating on certain surface areas and help everyone stay healthy. Contact the cleaning experts at The Service Fort at (770) 856-5751 for professional cleaning and janitorial services in Albuquerque. You and your employees will benefit from a cleaner workspace, where everyone will feel healthier and more productive.
