Says Sumedha Nerurkar, the Hygiene Manager at The Leela Kempinski, Mumbai, “Workplace hygiene has direct effect on the productivity of an e mployee. We have devised various training programmes to educate and make our employees aware of the importance of hygiene in housekeeping. We also use world class cleaning tools and products to add value to the process of housekeeping in our hotel.” Being a microbiologist, Sumedha makes sure that finer aspects of housekeeping, including personal hygiene and food safety, are taken care of by the staff.
Globalisation has given rise to an influx of international visitors into India They are well aware of the international standards of hygiene and housekeeping, and expect to see the same standards being followed in the hotels and resorts, especially the international chains operating in India. “We have therefore to keep ourselves and our employees up-to-date with the latest international trends, and even train them from that perspective from time to time,” says Balamurugan, Executive Housekeeper, The Lalit Resort and Spa, Kerala.
They believe that it is the nicotine that affects the guests but it is not true. It is in fact the bacteria infected saliva from the mouth, which gets transferred onto the fingers, and from the fingers it gets onto the food meant for the guests. – Sumedha Nerurkar
Most of the five star hotels and resorts concentrate on food safety and personal hygiene. Workplace hygiene is an issue which does not get its due recognition. Putting up posters, hand washing machines, sanitizers, dustbins all over the workplace is not just enough to ensure hygiene. Use of right kind of machinery is also equally important. As Balamurugan puts it, “Cleaning can be done either by hand held vacuum cleaner or backpack vacuum cleaner depending on the availability in that property. Again, it depends on the area which you want to clean. The choice of machine is important because use of wrong equipment will result in loss of time, energy and productivity.”
Hygiene, if it is to be maintained at an optimum level requires investment. Here we are not talking about basic norms of hygiene but hygiene that goes beyond just sweeping and swabbing. To meet the high expectations & standards and to ensure high employee performance by keeping the workplace germ and bacteria free, the management needs to have cleaning capital.
It is observed that be it international class hotels or any business houses in India, the percentage of money reserved for keeping the premises clean in the total budget is very less. Again, the percentage varies from property to property and seems to be absolutely need based. Out of the total budget to meet requirements of her department in a five star Spa like The Lalit, 20% of the total budget is utilised for housekeeping, revealed Sumedha. While it was generally agreed that the budget allotted was enough to get the work done, the managers welcomed the idea of increasing the limit.
“We are in pursuit of getting ISO 22000. It requires certain changes and upgradation of certain areas in the hotel. The management has decided to create a separate budget dedicated for ISO 22000.” This goes to prove that if you set high goals for yourself, you automatically begin to look beyond the obvious and start thinking about keeping the premises hygienically clean and not just clean.
Third Hand Smoke
When we speak of hygienic cleaning, we refer to surfaces that are cleaned and yet not clean. Recent studies have shown that standard cleaning techniques are not effective on the problem of Third Hand Smoking. This is a phenomenon, which involves residual toxic particulate settling onto surfaces and dangerous volatile organic compounds that saturate furniture, carpet and coat existing house dust. Third Hand Smoking poses a bigger health risk to children than adults since children have weak immune system as compared to adults.
Having a designated smoking zone in the premises is of really not much help because if the smoker does not wash his or her hands thoroughly after smoking, the smoke reside can easily get transferred and transmitted further, thus spreading the risk of contamination. Again, if the upholstery is not cleaned periodically and frequently, the smoke residue can pose health hazard.
“Ours is a wellness resort, so we are very particular in the matter of smoking. Rooms where smoking is allowed is also sanitized completely once every month. Normally, in other rooms, if the curtains and other upholstery are taken for washing or dry cleaning once in three months, the process is carried out once a month in smoking zones in the resort,”says Balamurugan.
Sumedha agrees. “In fact, I personally train my staff about the repercussions of smoking. They believe that it is the nicotine that affects the guests but it is not true. It is in fact the bacteria infected saliva from the mouth, which gets transferred onto the fingers, and from the fingers it gets onto the food meant for the guests. We have an isolated smoking zone for the employees, which gets cleaned and sanitized by the world class sanitizers. The dispensers and disinfectants are supplied by Diversey, our hygiene partner. The housekeeping uses these chemicals to keep the furniture and other surfaces clean. We, on our part, also personally check the efficacy of the chemicals that they supply.”
Rooms where smoking is allowed is also sanitized completely once every month, unlike other rooms where curtains and upholstery are taken up for dry cleaning once in three months – Balamurugan
Keeping hotel premises hygienically clean is not a one man job. It requires an equal, substantial and dedicated participation from the employees down to the last level. In huge set ups it is obviously a Herculean task to ensure that every employee, at every point in time, follows the prescribed rules and guidelines to the core, so that guests enjoy the same experience time and again.
Workplace Environment
So how does one ensure that the employees comply with norms? According to Santosh Naik, DS Administration Manager – RE, Shell India Markets Pvt Ltd, it is all about intervention and self- discipline. When it comes to corporate offices, employee productivity is directly proportional to the hygiene standards required for a healthy office work environment. “Yes, I agree. A clean and safe working environment adds to the employee’s output. It is on top priority for Shell to ensure safety and wellbeing of its employees,” says Santosh.
Not just safety, asset integrity and energy efficiency are given priority at Shell. “Meeting cost and service standard expectations that are aligned to business needs, drawing on our processes & tools and developing our staff to manage and sustain services are important. To enable smooth functioning, our Services Team delivers a fit-for-purpose working environment and related services, driving functional excellence in strategy, standards and tools for all locations.
Continuous improvement is always our initiative to make our office a great place to work. By benchmarking internally and externally, this is done effectively. – Santosh Naik
“Regular health risk assessments enable us to provide a great place to work in. We look at more common programmes to enhance services to make the workplace better. For example, we provide traveller data which guides the visitor on how to use the office premises. We have put up posters strategically in the wash area, offices, sites, etc. Our well-trained FM staff ensure the hygiene is maintained.”
Besides the regular hygiene products, Shell has also installed sanitary waste disposal units which are maintained appropriately. “Adequate budget is provided to ensure safe working environment. Cost is not the detrimental factor, if there is a necessity to upgrade the support services.”
Sumedha adds, “At Leela Kempinski, it’s an on-going process. You cannot bring in the change overnight. It is a gradual process and we believe in upgrading ourselves every day. The youngsters joining us are very enthusiastic and open to new ideas. The HR team too, proactively participates in the process. They arrange for the training and induction of new employees. I personally take their class for two hours to teach them the rules of safety and hygiene.”
Hygiene Basics at Workplace
- Have an infection control plan in place
- Hand washing facility should be made available wherever possible
- Provide tissue boxes to employees. Discourage them from using handkerchief
- Encourage staff not to share their belongings with other colleagues
- Remove all unnecessary reading material from waiting areas
- Ensure all ventilation system are in proper working condition always
Ashesh P