5 tips to help your cleaning business employees stay safe on the job

Published Oct 22, 2021

As a cleaning business owner, you work hard to keep your clients’ homes, workplaces, and other spaces clean and free of potentially hazardous bacteria. But are you as focused when it comes to making sure your staff stays healthy?

For cleaning and janitorial businesses, it’s important to stay safe on the job, as there are many potential hazards that could cause injury or illness. Of course, having workers’ compensation insurance is a must for high-risk industries like cleaning, but there are steps to take that can help prevent injuries or illnesses from occurring at all.

Let’s go over some helpful steps you can take to increase your cleaning business employee safety.

Risks Associated with Cleaning Businesses

In order to take the right precautions to increase job safety for your cleaning business, you need to know the risks you’re facing. There are many hazards that cleaning business employees face regularly, including:

Slips, trips, and falls
Strains, sprains, and repetitive motion injuries
Skin and allergic reactions caused by chemicals
Respiratory issues caused by chemicals
Long-term illnesses caused by exposure to chemicals
Electric shock
Carbon monoxide poisoning

Although these injuries and illnesses seem scary, they can be avoided if the proper precautions are taken.

5 Top Safety Measures to Stay Safe on the Job

The best way to ensure job safety for cleaning employees is to prioritize safety measures and education on workplace safety. Steps you can take include:

Abide by industry best practices. Every industry has certain standards that, when followed, help employees stay safe on the job and avoid injury. Refer to industry regulations, such as those set by OSHA, to create company policies that prioritize safe practices.
Teach safety around chemicals and cleaning products. One of the most dangerous parts of cleaning jobs is the constant exposure to dangerous chemicals. Teach your employees how to properly use, transport, and store chemicals and cleaning products.
Provide PPE to employees. Regardless of how much training employees have with chemicals, there is still inherent risk to using cleaning products daily. Provide and promote the usage of personal protective equipment for employees to minimize contact with chemicals.
Prevent slips and falls. Create policies around working on and near wet or slick surfaces. From proper signage to cleaning rooms from the inside out to avoid having to walk on wet floors, there are many safety protocols you can implement to help employees stay safe on the job.
Utilize safety training. Several aspects of the job affect cleaning business employee safety. The best way to address them is to have regular safety training programs. You want employees to understand the risks, know the precautions to take, and feel confident working with the right tools.

In the Event of an Injury/Illness

Precautions are all well and good, but what happens when things go wrong? In the event that one of your employees is injured while working, what should you do?

That’s where workers’ compensation insurance comes in. This business insurance policy helps protect you, your employee, and your business after an on-the-job injury or illness. Workers’ comp provides coverage for lost wages, full or partial disability, death benefits, medical expenses, and more. It’s an insurance policy that’s legally required by nearly every state. It ensures that even if the unexpected happens, your employee and your business are safe from the financial burden related to workplace injuries.

Cerity — Better Workers’ Compensation for Cleaning Businesses

You’ve got the business, the safety standards, and the team to execute them. All you need now is the coverage. Cerity offers workers’ compensation insurance for cleaning businesses without phone calls or paperwork. With our faster and more affordable approach to workers’ comp, you can get coverage in minutes.

Our proprietary tools and modern technology work together to get cleaning business owners a quote instantly. Simply visit our workers’ compensation quote tool, tell us a little about your business, and get your free online quote faster and easier than ever before.