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How can I safely return my employees to work?
As the government eases lockdown, more businesses are able to reopen and get back to providing their products and services. This is fantastic news, but with it comes the employers’ responsibility to put into action a number of key steps to help keep their staff and customers safe.
If this sounds a daunting task – don’t worry, it really needn’t be. At Macpro Design & Print Ltd. we are working with businesses like yours to help get their workplaces ready to operate again; and we would love to share our knowledge and experience with you today.
Even if the majority of your team are continuing to work from home for the time being, it pays to get ahead and start planning how you’ll prepare your business to adjust to the new ‘normal’ way of life.
We’ve created this handy guide to give you a practical and affordable plan of some things you’ll need to do to create a safe work environment. We cover signage and protective products, so that you can feel confident you’re taking effective steps to safeguard staff and customers.
Whilst this guide specifically looks at those businesses operating in an office environment, we work with a range of companies in different industries including: health, beauty, retail and hospitality.
Along with our health and safety range we are still regularly producing Business Stationery, Marketing Material, Brochures, Books and Banner.
Please do get in touch if you have any questions or need any help, we are always happy to assist.
Call us on 01727 850771 or email info@macprodp.com
Creating a Safe Environment
The next step is to take action and ensure your business is COVID-secure. Your key objective is to facilitate good hygiene and social distancing practices in the workplace, ensuring all safeguarding issues have been recognised and responded to, whilst maintaining a comfortable working environment.
Signage and
Communication
Signage is a good aid in
communicating hygiene and
social distancing messaging. There are various forms of health and safety signage that can be displayed, with a range of solutions, depending on your requirements or budget.
Look back on your notes / risk assessment and from point of arrival to your premises, think about what you immediately want to tell staff / customers / visitors / deliveries. For example:
Don’t forget keeping your workplace clean reduces the potential for coronavirus to spread and is a critical part of making your workplace a safe place. If you require a cleaning company we can recommend Minister Cleaning Services (can you make this a live link on the name: https://www.minstercleaning.co.uk/uk/hertfordshire- cleaning-services/)
If your premises have been closed Covid 19 will no longer be present, a spring clean is recommended. Thereafter an effective well managed regular cleaning regime is essential, with particular attention paid to touch points, desks, washrooms and kitchens.
Carry out a COVID-19 Risk
Assessment
Before staff can start returning to the workplace, it’s absolutely vital you
carry out a specific
COVID-19 risk
assessment to
establish what work
activities or situations
could cause the
transmission of the
virus. As an employer,
you have a legal responsibility to protect your employees and any other people who enter your site.
There is a whole host of things to think about, especially as each business and premises are different. A good place to start is by taking a detailed walk through your workplace, adopting both your employees’ and visitors’ perspective.
Begin with point of arrival to your premises and list the movements of a typical day right through to exiting the building. Consider all aspects of the journey with social distancing and hygiene in mind. Think about how you operate and note down any pinch-points, risks and concerns as they come up. This will allow you to formulate an actionable plan, highlighting changes that will need to be made, situations to address and what needs to be implemented to create a safe working space.
For ore information you can visit the government website:
Managing risks and risk assessment at work: www.hse.gov.uk/simple-health-safety/risk/ index.htm
Guidance to help carry out a risk assessment: www.gov.uk/coronavirus-business-reopening
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info@macprodp.com @macprodp