CLEANING & HYGIENE PROTECTING THE MOSTVALUABLE ASSET
James Nayler, Head of Sales, FM Sector at Biological Preparations, discusses why understanding the risks associated with harsh cleaning chemicals is crucial for retaining staff and strategic planning to maintain client trust.
In the facilities management sector, putting people first is not just a marketing slogan—people are the foundation of this industry. FM businesses are committed to supporting their clients by ensuring that workspaces are welcoming, safe, functional, and efficient. This is especially true in Soft FM, where services like cleaning play a vital role in maintaining clean, healthy, and secure environments. By keeping spaces well-maintained, FM businesses enhance working conditions and help clients achieve their business goals.
However, despite this focus on wellbeing and safety, the continued reliance on certain cleaning chemicals can undermine the industry's people-centric mission. Even with advancements in cleaning technology, many of these chemicals pose significant risks to human health. As more data and research emerge, it's only a matter of time before stakeholders in FM businesses begin scrutinising the products in their cleaning arsenal. Understanding the risks associated with harsh cleaning chemicals is crucial for retaining staff and strategic planning to maintain client trust. Ignoring these issues is a risk that FM businesses can no longer afford to take.
Protecting the most valuable asset:
Your staff The foundation of a successful FM business is its team. FM cleaning operatives are indispensable in helping FM businesses satisfy their customer goals and achievements. So, the protection of people must start with these frontline workers in mind. Yet, the FM industry often struggles with high staff turnover, surpassing the overall UK market average of 15%. Among the different factors driving this high turnover, the lack of safety and wellbeing for individual staff has been a continuously raised issue.
Safety and well-being encompass various aspects, from immediate physical health to mental and long-term health. Unfortunately, the very tools meant to maintain cleanliness can contribute to these issues. The reliance on harsh chemicals not only jeopardises the health of the cleaning staff but also undermines the industry's commitment to a people-first approach.
Short-term health:
The immediate impact A reliable workforce is crucial to meeting targets and servicing customer sites. But with high turnover, every team member counts. A single sick day can lead to overstretched teams or even missed site visits. While sick days are commonly attributed to colds or local viruses, they can also result from overexposure to cleaning chemicals. Such exposure can trigger respiratory issues,
allergic reactions, headaches, throat and nose irritation, and even vomiting.
These health issues may seem minor individually, but they add up across operations, as they can cause a significant drop in workforce productivity overall. This is not only a loss for the business but also a clear signal to future recruits and current team members that the current approach to cleaning may be harmful to their health. Meaning that cleaning may not be a long-term career path that they would want to pursue, perpetuating that high staff turnover cycle.
Long-term health: The cumulative effect In the pursuit of a fulfilling career that supports financial, personal, and health needs, long-term health is vital. Yet, the very chemicals used in daily operations can pose significant long-term health risks. Here are just a few research examples showing the long-term health affect cleaning chemicals can have.
Asthma: A US study found that 12% of work-related asthma cases were linked to exposure to cleaning products. Cleaning operatives who didn’t have asthma before joining the industry were more likely to develop it over time due to repeated exposure to volatile organic compounds (VOCs). These VOCs, inhaled during cleaning, cause lung inflammation and tissue damage.
Hand Dermatitis: A survey of 5,000 employees across 37 cleaning companies found that 28% of cleaning operatives reported hand dermatitis—10% higher than the general population. This condition is often caused by repeated exposure to harsh chemicals that strip the skin of its natural oils, leaving it vulnerable to infection, chronic pain, and reduced functionality.
Fertility: While many businesses take steps to protect pregnant employees from harsh chemicals, emerging research shows that chemical exposure can affect fertility even before conception. For instance, phthalates, common in cleaning product fragrances, are suspected endocrine disruptors linked to reduced sperm count in men.
These long-term health issues are not just statistics— they represent the consequences that many people in FM face by undergoing this career path. FM businesses have a responsibility to protect their staff from these risks by adopting safer, more sustainable cleaning practices.
Mental health: The unseen burden With high staff turnover and a challenging labour market, FM businesses often face the pressure of stretched resources. This pressure can increase the mental load on staff, who are tasked with managing multiple sites
24 | TOMORROW’S FM
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