How to Lower the Risk of Worker Illness in the Workplace

Statistics show that most workers in the United States take five days per year. Whether it's the common cold or the flu, infectious illness is a serious problem that can hinder a business's ability to perform its respective operations. When workers call out sick, the employer must find a replacement to cover the worker's shift. Not only does this take time, but it also costs money and resources, thereby lowering the business's productivity. There are ways to protect against infectious illness in the workplace, however, including the following.

Hand Sanitizer

Placing bottles of hand sanitizer throughout your workplace is a simple and effective way to prevent the spread of germs. You'll often find hand sanitizer dispensers throughout hospitals and other medical practices specifically for this reason. Workers can easily sanitize their hands, killing germs and protecting themselves from transmissible illness.

Clean Dirty Surfaces

Germs are everywhere, but some surfaces are naturally more germ ridden than others. In a typical workplace, some of the dirties surfaces include elevator buttons, vending machine buttons, keyboards, phones, fax machine buttons and other surfaces that are frequently touched by multiple people. Because of this, it's recommended that employers clean dirty surfaces such as these on a regular basis.

Healthy Eating

As an employer, you should encourage workers to make smart choices regarding the foods they eat and the beverages they drink. Diet plays a key role in workers' health. Workers who eat fast food and drink sugary sodas on a daily basis are more likely to get sick than their counterparts who eat natural, healthy foods and drink water. You can't control what workers eat or drink, but you can still raise awareness for the importance of a healthy diet.

Clean the Air

Indoor air pollution has become a serious problem. According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the air inside a typical workplace is up to five times more polluted than the air outside a workplace. Therefore, you should take a proactive approach towards cleaning the air in your workplace. If it's saturated with bacteria, viruses and fungi, workers will likely get sick more frequently. You can clean the air in your workplace, however, by replacing the HVAC filter on a regular basis and decorating with houseplants. Air filters work to remove impurities from the air, while plants have a similar effect by filtering pollutants and simultaneously releasing fresh oxygen.