This year, humanity has faced an invisible enemy that has taken the lives of millions of people around the world. Because of a novel virus, the disease called COVID-19 spread almost instantly, and while governments implemented several measures to mitigate the contagion, there are still people who are acquiring the virus daily.
To ensure the safety of the people while still ensuring that economies run, there have been additional measures that are put in place, particularly for people reporting back to their respective workplaces. Below are some of the things that you can do to keep your office safe from COVID-19, without adding more to your stress.
Maintaining a Safe Distance
One of the first things that you should implement in the office is a transformation of your cubicle layout. In doing so, make sure that each worker is seated at least a meter apart from each other, or even further if your office space allows. It would also help to install sneeze guards, particularly if you are using a common desk that is occupied by multiple employees, which can easily be attached to your office desks, according to experts at A1OfficeFurniture.co.uk. Although these sneeze guards have a standard height, they come in varying widths, allowing you to find one that suitably fits the desk you are using.
In line with this, perhaps it will also help to implement a skeletal workforce in the office wherein only some employees will report physically to the office, while the rest will be on a remote set up. You can implement this on a rotational basis such that the ones who worked remotely for the past two weeks should report to the office after, and vice versa. This way, you are sure that there is ample space in your office to cater to everyone present, even if they maintain at least a meter-long distance from each other.
Communication and Signage
Another simple thing that you can do to ensure the safety of your workers in the office and protect them from the virus is to ensure that proper communication lines are open. If necessary, you can assign a person responsible for addressing the concerns of anyone from your staff about the virus. He or she will also be responsible for monitoring the temperature of your staff, and forward the information to the health authorities promptly should anyone show the symptoms of the virus.
Aside from this, it will also help to put up various signage across your office, reminding everyone to keep their masks on or frequently wash their hands properly. In this way, everyone is aware of what they need to do to ensure that they don’t acquire the virus from their workplace. Aside from signage, you can also send reminders through email from time to time.
Air Quality and Ventilation System
If you haven’t got in touch with your facilities engineer yet, then this is the perfect time to do so because you need to ensure that your ventilation systems are fully functional. In doing so, consider checking your filtration systems that screen out the pathogens that may be present in the air you breathe in the office. Concentrate on the minimum efficiency reporting value (MERV) of your system because as much as possible, you would want to have a higher MERV which indicates that the air filter is more efficient in removing particles.
Updated Cleaning Guidelines
You also need to get in touch with your office cleaners to ensure that they are updated with the cleaning guidelines that adhere to the standards set by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). This includes wearing the proper protective equipment when disinfecting your office space.
Final Word
Make sure that you keep a safe distance from your colleagues and peers in the office and this includes having to transform the layout of your workplace to have a space of at least a meter apart from each other. Also post signage that will remind everyone on how they can protect themselves from the virus, whether by constantly wearing their face masks or frequently washing their hands.
In addition to this, exert an extra effort to maintain the air quality in your office space as well as the ventilation system. Also, update your cleaning guidelines as necessary to conform to the standards set by OSHA and CDC. All these are geared towards ensuring that you and your workmates in the office are safe and protected against COVID-19.
