For businesses that have had to limit or suspend their activities during the COVID-19 lockdown, the prospects of some of those restrictions being eased will represent an important first step on the path back to normality.
However, business owners will also be very aware that this will be a difficult path to tread, particularly with regard to workplace safety.
A lax approach to health and hygiene in these early days and weeks after lockdown could be hugely damaging to your organisation and to the nationwide effort to stop the spread of the coronavirus, potentially creating the risk of a second wave of infections and lockdown measures being reimposed.
As such, any return to work after lockdown needs to be carefully and safely managed, with an emphasis on high standards of worker hygiene, continued social distancing and strict control over working protocols.
In order to help businesses prepare, we’ve put together a few tips on how to ensure your organisation is able to resume work as efficiently as possible, while continuing to keep your workers safe and protected from the threat that COVID-19 still poses.
Well-organised business owners should be taking this opportunity to put thorough and careful plans in place for exactly how any return to work will be safely managed, looking at what measures will be needed and how this will be accomplished.
As with any workplace safety matter, this should start with a thorough risk assessment, followed by the creation of a comprehensive, forward-looking plan. Possible steps include:
A complete return to “business as usual” will not be possible straight away. While the risk of infection is still high, it’s important to ensure that access to your working space is provided only when necessary, which may mean limiting the number of visitors or on-site customers you allow inside.
To achieve this, consider the following steps:
Social distancing has become an everyday reality due to COVID-19, and this will continue in the early days of the post-lockdown recovery. Staying safe at work will mean sticking to a minimum two-metre distance between individuals, so it is sensible to look now at ways in which this can be achieved. Consider the following tips:
Maintaining a high standard of hygiene and cleanliness remains the number one way of preventing the spread of COVID-19. Staff are likely to be aware of the need for regular hand-washing by now, but it’s still advisable to make sure this message is properly hammered home at this crucial time.
As an employer, you can help to reinforce this by doing the following:
As with any health and safety plan, your COVID-19 policies will be much more effective with the complete buy-in of every member of staff. This means consulting with everyone involved to make sure individual needs are being met, and that all workers understand what is expected of them.
Possible steps include:
By taking these steps, your business should be able navigate the challenges of returning to work after lockdown, establishing a productive and effective new way of working that will help get your business back on track - while continuing to keep coronavirus at bay.
If you’re looking for safety products to help keep your workers safe from COVID-19, SafetyBuyer offers a comprehensive range of high-quality coronavirus safety products and solutions, with fast UK delivery, competitive pricing and top-tier customer service.
For more information, call us for free on 0800 043 0161, or drop us an email at sales@safetybuyer.com.
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