a healthier environment. So, a hygienic workplace goes beyond health and safety and becomes a retention issue.


Workplace hygiene programmes


Businesses have a duty to ensure the health and safety of all occupants. One way to do so is with a comprehensive workplace hygiene programme.


I have already touched upon the importance of technology and data in a workplace hygiene programme. Of equal significance are science and people.


The science aspect underpins how we evaluate and treat high risk touchpoints. We do this by swabbing various surfaces to determine its total variable count (TVC). The TVC shows the number of aerobic viable microorganisms, E.coli and Total Coliforms (gut bacteria present in humans and other animals) on a specified area of a surface.


TVC swabbing is used to check bacteria levels at different areas and adjust cleaning programmes as needed. Cleaning operatives can be informed of which areas have a higher count and spend more time or use different techniques in those places.


Swabbing can be carried out at a mix of fixed and random sites over time. This helps build up a picture of workplace hygiene and ensures that cleaning regimes can be adjusted when necessary.


Of course, it’s hard to see hygiene so don’t assume that employees will be aware of the design and impact of a hygiene programme. Make it a regular part of your internal communications so that employees can be in no doubt about your commitment to their health and safety.


People-first approach


People are the reason that we need cleaning and hygiene programmes, so naturally they should be a central part of the process.


From a client side, that means involving employees in the process. Find out what their top hygiene concerns are and let them know how you will address them. Make the lives of decision makers easier by being proactive and coming to them with solutions instead of problems.


From the service provider side, the cleaning operatives are the heartbeat of the programme. It’s essential to support them through training and give them opportunities to relay


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feedback and suggestions. While data is invaluable, cleaning operatives are on the ground every day and will pick up insights and ideas that data cannot spot.


Social value


The subject of supporting employees leads me on to social value. We’re seeing more and more tenders place a greater weight on social value. A corporate ESG guide, which was released in December 2022, highlighted ‘the need for companies to manage their global supply chains from a human rights perspective’.


We won the EcoVadis Gold Award in 2022 and our performance in the ‘Labour and human rights’ category was rated as advanced. The benchmark set in tenders will continue to be raised so suppliers should waste no time in enhancing their ESG accreditations.


Sustainability


Sustainability is another key part of ESG and will dominate cleaning and FM in 2023 and beyond. As with social value, sustainability is featuring more prominently in tender questions, and this is only going to increase.


Fortunately, our sector is well placed to make meaningful changes through the reduction of chemical-based cleaning products and single-use plastic.


Through our use of the PVA range, we have saved 57 tonnes of plastic since September 2021, and over 120 tonnes of plastic since we first introduced the PVA range in 2019. This is equal to 12 London double decker buses. If programmes like this are replicated across the industry, the environmental benefits quickly multiply.


I’m excited about the year ahead. When I look at the cleaning industry, I see so much scope for added value beyond the basic remit of work. In particular, we have a huge amount to offer from an ESG perspective – our challenge now is to translate our plans into action and share our successes internally and externally. Let’s work together to share best practice and drive the industry forward in 2023 and beyond.


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