This summer’s 1,000 Canadian forest fires have spewed tons of smoke across the U.S., including Minnesota, much of it making its way past building air filters and into workspaces. And that’s not good for workers’ health.

But the good news is that stepped-up office cleaning can reduce risks to employees.

The damage is akin to allowing cigarette smoking in the office again

These smoke particles (which are 30 times smaller in diameter than a human hair) hang in the indoor air and can find their way into the lungs of workers. According to The New York Times, the Canadian smoke already has been linked to worsened heart problems, reduced lung function and aggravated asthma.

But that’s not all the harm. By August, the smoke and its 160 megatons of carbon settling over the U.S. will regularly form almost invisible coatings on office desks, counters, cabinets and rugs. If not regularly cleaned, this fine particulate matter gets stirred up into the air around workers. In some cases, the consequence is akin to reinstating cigarette smoking in the office.

Besides lung cancer, the particulates can cause:

• Heart disease
• Weakened immune systems
• Eye, nose and throat irritation
• Especially vulnerable are pregnant people, older workers and those who are immunocompromised.

An important solution: more frequent office cleaning to reduce risks

The U.S. EPA recommends that offices affected by Canadian smoke increase the frequency of commercial cleaning. According to the EPA, office cleaners should use high-density filters and special cleaning solutions that gather up and remove the smoke particles.

Joe Walz, president of Walz Enterprises, a commercial cleaner in the Twin Cities, uses high-powered extraction vacuums to remove particles from the floor, desktops and office furniture. Then his cleaners sanitize all surfaces, removing smoke particles, other particulate matter and germs.

“Fabrics, like those on office chairs, are like smoke sponges,” Walz says. “When employees sit down, they stir up the smoke particles and breathe them. The particles that stay in the fabric degrade the fabric and give a permanent smoky odor.”

“Employers hire us because they know employees and customers prefer clean environments,” Walz says. “But employers also view us as a key line of defense in safeguarding employee health.”

Smoke may leave employers on the hook for higher health costs and legal penalties

This Canadian smoke has employers worried about a huge potential bump in costs for health care, disability, employee workplace lawsuits and lost productivity. Companies have a legal duty to provide a safe work environment. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration combined with state laws provide penalties for breaches, including unclean air or work surfaces.

To address this legal and ethical duty, employers are taking these steps:

1. Testing air quality and replacing HVAC filters more often
2. Hiring commercial office cleaners on an expedited basis to more regularly clean all work surfaces of dust and dirt, which often are particulates from smoke.
3. Installing extra filtration units scattered throughout the workspace.
4. Offering N95 air masks to employees who want them.

No end in sight for Canadian fires

The average Canadian forest fire burns for 37 days. The fire season is expected to continue until the end of October.

Much has been said of how a professionally cleaned office removes germs and improves the physical health of workers. But new studies are showing that a clean office environment also improves employee mental health, with the benefits of boosting productivity, cutting mental healthcare costs, and even increasing happiness!

At Walz Enterprises, a commercial cleaning company in the Twin Cities, customers give us feedback that their employees notice after we’ve cleaned their offices and that mood and productivity increase.

Here’s the proof:

More focus and productivity. A clean office reduces levels of the stress hormone cortisol, helping employees to be more focused and productive. Conversely, cortisol is fired up by a messy, dirty or disorganized work environment. Higher cortisol levels actually increase anxiety and reduce focus and memory, thereby reducing work effectiveness and delaying work decisions. Over time, high cortisol can cause high blood pressure, osteoporosis and depression, all conspiring to reduce mental and physical health, increase employer medical costs and increase absences that drain productivity.

Lower stress levels. Cleaner offices decrease stress levels. Studies show dirt and clutter, whether on the employees’ desks or within the office environment, create stress, emotional exhaustion and prickly behaviors. Cluttered workplaces that haven’t been regularly cleaned and put in order cause neurotic interactions with coworkers, degrading productivity.

A happier mood. A cleaner office environment usually is associated with more space for movement and more comfort. You won’t be bumping into things that have been put away or surfaces that leave dust and dirt on your clothes. This freedom of movement is directly related to a positive mood and energetic body, which improves collaboration and mental acuteness.

 A relaxed brain. Studies cited in the Harvard Business Review compared the impact of working in clutter vs. organized spaces and found that too many visual stimuli (think: overflowing garbage cans, dirty sinks in the restrooms and dirty carpets and windows) makes it hard for the brain to focus and process information. The overload can be stressful for some people. Worker brains in these situations become like computer desktops with too many files open at the same time. Processing capacity slows!

No doubt about it, a clean office improves mental health. We’ve all experienced the feeling of coming into a clean space that is orderly and smells fresh. We take a deep breath and feel immediately relaxed. Mental health and a positive attitude can be the difference between a workforce that barely gets things done and a workforce that manages to excel…and feels great about being at work.

Picking the right commercial cleaner has never been more important. A clean and healthy workplace ranks high among employees and customers, who have come out of the pandemic with a greater appreciation for hygiene. Finding the right commercial cleaning company starts with developing criteria for making the selection.

Stick to the fundamentals of selection

Commercial cleaning is evolving rapidly, with changes in equipment, cleaning solutions, green cleaning, and customized health and safety protocols. But when it comes to picking the right commercial cleaner for your business, these four fundamental criteria should be top of mind:

1. Reliability. Commercial cleaners are stretched to the limits. With new COVID protocols, more businesses, hospitals, churches and other public-facing buildings are clamoring to hire commercial cleaners. Demand is growing 6.3% a year. This is putting pressure on commercial cleaners to staff and maintain reliable services. Your No. #1 criteria for picking a commercial cleaner should be whether they show up on time with trained staff and get the job done. Walz Enterprises has a near perfect on-site, on-time record. We are happy to help you check references.
2. Category Specialization. No commercial cleaner can be all things to all people. They specialize. Some have credentials for cleaning churches, hospitals, office buildings, government spaces, schools or industrial settings. Each category has specialized needs. Hospitals require special cleaning disinfectants, with particular care in cleaning waiting rooms, patient exam rooms and bathrooms. Churches need extra cleaning in the worship space, pews, entrance doors and hand railings. You should pick a cleaner who specializes in your category.
3. Service Type. Each commercial cleaner has staff and equipment specialties. Some excel in upholstery cleaning, while others specialize in window or floor cleaning. Some are best for construction cleaning. Many commercial cleaners have multiple skills and niches, with staff training and equipment to back it up. Make sure the person interviewing commercial cleaners has the knowledge and background to assess whether there is a match between your needs and the service capabilities of the commercial cleaner.
4. Health and Safety. One lasting impact of the pandemic is a heightened awareness of cleanliness and hygiene. Commercial cleaning services are now focusing more on implementing rigorous health and safety protocols, such as enhanced disinfection practices, touchless solutions, and the use of antimicrobial surfaces and coatings. Employers know the cost of employee illness (on productivity and healthcare expenses). Employers also want to make the workplace inviting to counter employee demands for remote work. We encourage you to pick a commercial cleaner with expertise in hygienic cleaning.

The point of this list is to help you focus on the basics when selecting your commercial cleaner, and not to be swayed by a cleaning company that has the latest gismos. You want a cleaner that is dependable, has the skills and expertise to match your needs, and does the deep cleaning necessary to make your workplace safe.

Once selected, continue periodic monitoring

Once you select the right cleaning vendor, your work is not done. Commercial cleaners appreciate contracts that detail the work expectations and often include checklists by which their work is measured.

Then periodic review sessions with the cleaning vendor give vital feedback to help them become more effective or to adjust their tasks to better meet your changing needs.

Offices are outsourcing commercial cleaning at a torrid pace.

If this trend continues, the commercial cleaning industry is expected to hit more than $468B in revenue by 2027. That’s a 51.67% increase over the market’s $308.7B value in 2020.

What’s behind this push by businesses to hire cleaning companies? Here are the top seven reasons:

1. Emphasis on Health and Wellness. These days, commercial cleaning companies are highly trained in cleaning techniques that improve the healthiness of a work setting. Businesses want to be able to promise employees and customers that their facilities are sanitized and regularly disinfected, so they are safe from illnesses or outbreaks. Without this assurance, businesses may have difficulty recruiting and may see increased costs associated with healthcare and absences.
2. Cost Cutting. With low unemployment, finding and hiring full-time cleaners is getting more expensive and more competitive for commercial businesses. Now, when companies factor in recruiting, training, supervision, wages and benefit costs, they find it is cheaper to hire outside cleaners than to have internal cleaning staff. Plus, smaller companies cannot justify full-time staff for what turns out to be part-time work.
3. Ease of One-Stop Shopping. Businesses want a variety of cleaning skills that often can’t be found by hiring their own cleaning staff. That’s why commercial cleaning companies are adding services so that employers only need to outsource cleaning to one vendor. Walz Enterprises, for example, does commercial cleaning, janitorial work, carpet and floor cleaning, tile and grout cleaning, and other special projects.
4. Concern for Less Business Disruption. Commercial office cleaners, unlike most employee cleaners, can be available after hours to lessen disruption among employees and customers. No employee or customer wants someone cleaning under their feet…nor do employees or customers want to see a “closed for cleaning” sign on a bathroom door.
5. No Need to Pay Liability Insurance Costs. When offices and retail establishments hire outside cleaners, those cleaners are covered by liability insurance purchased by the commercial cleaning company.
6. Reducing Cleaning Product Costs. Cleaning supplies can be expensive. Commercial cleaners purchase cleaning products in bulk and at reduced cost. They also invest in sometimes costly green cleaning solutions and processes that protect the clients from environmental liability. Professional cleaners can justify purchasing top-of-the-line cleaning equipment and supplies, the cost of which can be spread over multiple clients.
7. Establishing Easily Enforceable Standards. Cleaning expectations can be spelled out in contracts with the cleaning company that are easy to enforce, compared to dealing with hired staff where disagreements could lead to arbitration.

For these reasons, the trend towards outsourcing office cleaning services will continue to grow, as companies seek to streamline their operations and reduce costs while still maintaining a high level of cleanliness and hygiene.

Every setting has its own commercial cleaning challenges. This is especially true in a place of worship, where clean sanctuaries, religious education rooms, social halls and bathrooms invite members and guests to feel welcome. After all, cleanliness reflects confidence and pride. Not only that but in today’s world, cleanliness is also equated with health.

Many houses of worship have maintenance staff who are responsible for repairs and, sometimes, basic cleaning. A professional cleaner is usually brought in regularly to attend to important and specific cleaning tasks. Based on our own professional cleaning experience at Walz Enterprises, here are 5 ways a good commercial cleaner approaches a worship setting:

(Photo courtesy of Religious Product News)

1. Start with a plan. A custom plan will include regular cleaning chores, but also special or deep cleaning that’s done periodically. The plan addresses the frequency of regular cleaning and the times of the year when deep cleaning, such as carpet cleaning or upholstery cleaning, is done. The plan also lists expectations for special areas, such as the religious education wing, the communal kitchen, meeting rooms, the library and the altar area.
2. Expect professional grade equipment and products. The best equipment that uses carefully formulated cleaning solutions makes a vital difference. Surfaces must be made not only dust-free but also germ-free to reduce disease transmission. This disinfectant cleaning is especially essential in high-germ-potential areas: restrooms and religious education rooms, water fountains, elevator panels and light switch plates.
3. Attend high-touch areas. Houses of worship have unique communal areas of high touch where germs are easily spread, such as entrance doors, railings in stairwells, pew and seating rails, and window wells. Toys or learning aids in the education wing are also high-touch items, along with mats and lunch trays.
4. Pay special attention to bathrooms. Bathrooms of course get a lot of traffic and can be places of germ spread. Professionals should clean and then disinfect all floors, counters, baby tables, sinks, toilets, faucets and handles, stall walls and doors, and handles and knobs. Part of cleaning is to refill towel, soap and sanitizing dispensers.
5. Focus on the religious offices. The administrative offices are used frequently and deserve the same thorough cleaning that any commercial office gets. This includes cleaning and sanitizing desktops, computer keyboards and computer screens in addition to emptying the trash and cleaning the copy machine surfaces and controls.

A key consideration with place of worship cleaning is timing. The cleaning company should be clear on when they should be onsite so as not to interfere with worship activities and related events, but at the same time be onsite to prepare the setting for its busiest times.

How employers can reduce the spread of disease at work

Because the workplace is a big spreader of winter illnesses, employers typically take steps to reduce the spread of disease.

Key among them is stepping up the frequency and intensity of workplace cleaning. Here’s why: most respiratory illnesses are spread by airborne viruses. These viruses land on surfaces at work, and viruses can live on surfaces for 24 hours. An easy way to get sick is by touching a surface with the virus (such as a shared keyboard, a desktop, a bathroom sink or a conference room table) and then touching your eyes, mouth or nose.

That’s where a good commercial cleaning company comes into play. According to the CDC, a commercial cleaner that uses disinfectants AND is diligent about cleaning all surfaces that may contain viruses will lower workplace transmission.

At Walz Enterprises, we have respiratory illness cleaning protocols that include:

• Using environmentally safe cleaning compounds that are strong disinfectants.
• Cleaning all surfaces that many cleaning companies miss—surfaces that retain and spread germs such as switch plates, keyboards, computer screens, desktops, sinks in restrooms and common areas, and metal or plastic armrests.
• Emptying trash, particularly if it contains used facial tissue.

Why employers should be especially diligent about cleanliness this holiday season

Respiratory illnesses were less of a concern during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. Employees were working remotely when possible. Some wore masks and many workers were especially careful about germ transmission. As a result, disease incidence was down.

As the pandemic has receded and more employees are back at work (and being required to return to work), respiratory illnesses are increasing along with costly employee absenteeism, reduced productivity and increasing healthcare claims.

Employers are urging workers to get the flu shot, stay home when sick and use care while at work to contain the spread of disease. They also are investing in more intense and frequent professional cleaning of the workplace by firms that have a reputation and experience in hygienic cleaning.