It is prudent for all businesses to be proactive in reducing possible toxic injury to its employees in the workplace.  Employees are the greatest assets to a company.  Toxic injury or allergies caused by chemical exposure, including that from non-green cleaning products, is the leading cause of Workers’ Compensation claims and litigation for employers.  According to the Occupational Health & Safety Administration, more than 20% of the entire U.S. workforce is exposed to hazardous chemical products.  With a percentage of those employees already suffering from allergies, the toxic exposure to non-green cleaning products can be costly operating expenses for a company.

Furthermore, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) reports certain ingredients in non-green cleaning products can cause skin and eye irritation to workers, as well as affect the indoor air quality:

“In the 1960’s, Sick Building Syndrome (SBS) was first identified when research revealed that volatile organic compounds from carpeting and furniture, inadequate air circulation, poor lighting, mold build-up and disruptive temperature variances were contributing to nausea, respiratory problems, skin rashes, lethargy, headaches and numerous other health concerns.” (“Indoor Air Facts No. 4: Sick Building Syndrome (SBS)”, “An Introduction to Indoor Air Quality,” U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 2006.)

By switching to green cleaning products, and green products in general, it leads to healthier work environments, which leads to healthier employees.  Healthier employees have lower absenteeism than those suffering from allergies or toxic exposure.  Low absenteeism means more productivity for the company and lower operating costs.

The most feasible and least expensive route for businesses to transition to a non-green, workplace is through the implementation of non-green products and the utilization of a non-green cleaning company, such Clean Hands, LLC.  Clean Hands, LLC assures green products are consistently used, thus eliminating the threat of toxic exposure to employees and improving the indoor air quality.  In addition, there are government incentives got companies that go green, such as LEED, through the U.S. Green Building Project, and the EPA’s Energy Star program, through the U.S. Department of Energy.  The incentives and rewards range from tax credits to awards of excellence in the respective industry.  Thus, going green makes sound business sense!

Resources:

www.epa.gov/epp/pubs/cleaning.htm

www.energystar.gov

Although most people look upon commercial cleaning as a luxury more than a necessity, it is an essential part of doing business. A clean office goes a long way in creating an environment that makes for happy, productive, and healthy workers.

Hiring cleaning services of your office or building not only saves your time and energy that are better allocated to more imminent endeavors, but there is a definite science to cleaning that is lost on most people who do not devote their professional lives to the skill. For instance, certain floors, like marble or terrazzo, need to be polished in a certain way and with a special kind of polish to reduce scratching of the surface and ensure longevity. Special tools are needed to clean and polish certain types of stone and surfaces as well, and it only makes sense to own these tools if it’s your job to use them.

Bathrooms are another area that requires special care. Some cleaning products actually corrode the soft plastic surfaces of a bathroom, which will make them more susceptible to germ accumulation in the long term.

And professional cleaners not only pay closer attention to the details, but they know which details to pay closer attention to. Doorknobs and phone receivers are a hotbed of germs and bacteria, a key piece of information that is not lost on professional cleaners.

Some office or business owners just don’t like the idea of a crew of cleaners coming into the office when no one else is there. This is why you need to do your research on cleaning companies and only patronize those that do a thorough background check on all their employees. And as soon as you experience the benefits first-hand of having a cleaning crew, you’ll want them in your office as much as possible.

In these slow economic times, hiring a commercial cleaning service for your office may seem like an extraneous expense that you could do without, but not all expenses should be treated as expenses. Some expenses are investments that save you time and money in the long run. Here’s why writing a check to a commercial cleaning service is actually more like receiving a check.

It’s less expensive to maintain a clean office

Even if you don’t hire a cleaning service, you need to hire somebody to clean your office, and a cleaning service has the necessary equipment to make the cleaning as fast and as cost-effective as possible. You could clean your office yourself, but as the head of an office, your time is more lucrative when spent on other projects.

A cleaning service gives you peace of mind

Doesn’t feel good to have one less thing to worry about? The peace of mind is symbolic of life moving forward. Making a schedule with a commercial cleaning service gives you this same peace of mind. That’s one less thing you will have to worry about, which frees up more mental energy that you can use to improve your business.

Customizable work orders

You may think that your office is too small to merit a cleaning crew, and so you don’t want to pay for any cleaning services that your office isn’t going to need. Rest assured that you can customize each cleaning by letting the cleaners know exactly what you want cleaned, what you don’t want cleaned, what equipment you want them to use, and even the number of workers you want on the job. This way you only pay for what you need instead of wasting money on way you don’t need.

The green movement has become much more than a fad over the last 20 years. An idea that is no longer relegated to the confines of Captain Planet or the ivory tower has now completely permeated society. No matter your political affiliation, it’s become difficult to argue against saving the environment. Though we may still argue on how to do it, the point is that we should do it.

As a byproduct of the green movement, we have become more conscientious of how our cleaning products affect the environment. It turns out that the petroleum-based cleaning products that we used for years are actually toxic. They seep into your skin without you knowing, and their residual negative effects can build up over time to cause some real health problems.  Also, petroleum-based cleaning products are often corrosive, which means that they’re actually bad for your office as well as you.

Given what we now know about harmful cleaning products, it has become of the utmost importance to only hire cleaning companies that use eco-friendly products. The result has been a surge in cleaning companies that use green cleaning products. These products cause no noxious fumes, they’re non-corrosive, and most of them are even safe enough to drink (though this isn’t recommended).

So before you hire a cleaning service to clean your office, ask them a few questions about the products they use. You need to be careful because some cleaning services only pretend to use eco-friendly products to seem progressive. Another good way to make sure that a cleaning service uses green supplies is to check with consumer reports or read consumer reviews online. It’s usually no secret which cleaning services are dedicated to the health of their customers, and the health of their planet.

Commercial cleaners are often overlooked by business owners as an essential part of office operations. Maybe having a clean office isn’t as important as an internet connection, but a commercial cleaner is much more affordable that we would initially think, and more importantly, much more useful.

Commercial cleaners will do all the general cleaning, like dusting, vacuuming, and window washing. But  they do a lot of extra cleaning that you wouldn’t normally do yourself. For instance, commercial cleaners will clean all phones and phone receivers, which probably have more germs than even the toilet. Speaking of which, you don’t want to clean the toilets in your office yourself. After all, you started a business to be in charge, to make all the important decisions, and while no job is too small for a good leader, some jobs actually are too small, especially when you have to put the full intention of your being into making sure you can pay your employees.

There are more subtle, inconspicuous benefits to commercial cleaning as well. A clean office just feels different; it feels like a real company that is actually making stuff happen. A messy office just seems like some guy started a business in his spare bedroom and transposed the room into office space. This may have been how your business got its start, but you don’t want the office to look that way.

A consistently clean office commands respect from employees. They’ll be sure to work harder if they know you care, and it commands respects from clients and customers when they visit. They have options, and if they visit your office and even think that they can possibly smell your bathroom from the entrance, they’re sure to start thinking about taking their business elsewhere.

It’s official, the green movement is no longer a fad. Now it’s well-established, and it keeps building steam, which is fine as long as its steam is from an electric motor. One benefit of the popularity of the green movement is now it’s easier than ever to not only get your office clean, but to green clean it. This way, you’ll be clean about being clean, which is great for the environment, and it’s even better for you.

We all know that a clean office is beneficial for work productivity and employee health, but green products will do more than keep your employees productive and healthy, they’ll keep them safe as well. For instance, it’s important to use unbleached paper towels and bath tissue because chlorine can be extremely toxic when it’s broken down to its byproducts.

Also, traditional cleaners have petroleum-based chemicals that are toxic when absorbed by the skin. So even if they make your office look and smell clean, all it did was replace one harmful substance with another.

Vacuum cleaners with a sealed canister and Hepa filter are also important in that they not only pick up dirt, but allergens.

The best way to find a green cleaning service isn’t to take a cleaning company’s word or their name for it. A cleaning service with a name like “GreanCleeners” may just be trying to sound environmentally safe, or maybe they’re just bad spellers. Instead, call several cleaning services and ask questions. Ask what kind of cleaning products they use without any hint of an agenda in order to get the most honest answer.

All these green cleaning improvements beget a clean and healthy work place, both of which will save you a different kind of green in the long run. Other offices will be green with envy, so don’t be green with naiveté: Start looking for a green cleaning service today.