Good hygiene in the workplace is essential for maintaining a healthy environment for all employees and limiting the spread of illness. There are several things employers can do to ensure that workers are practicing proper hygiene while also ensuring that facilities are sanitary. 

WORKER HYGIENE

HAND WASHING

Proper handwashing is one of the most effective ways to prevent the spread of infectious diseases. 

When to wash your hands:

• Before and after using the restroom

• Before eating or drinking

• After returning to work from a break

• After coughing, sneezing, or blowing your nose

• After touching dirty surfaces, equipment, or utensils

• After handling trash, waste, or soiled materials

• After performing equipment maintenance

• Before and after treating a wound

How to wash your hands: 

• Wet your hands.

• Apply soap and scrub for 20 seconds, covering the back of your hands, wrists, between fingers, and under fingernails.

• Rinse thoroughly with warm water.

• Towel dry your hands and use the towel to turn off the taps.

RECOGNIZING ILLNESS  

Workers should self-monitor for symptoms of illness, including:

• Coughing or sneezing

• Nasal congestion or discharge

• Runny nose

• Fever

• Sore or scratchy throat

• Fatigue or body aches

• Vomiting or diarrhea

Workers showing symptoms should stay home or report to a supervisor and go home if symptoms develop during the workday.

COUGHING AND SNEEZING 

Workers should cover their mouth and nose with a tissue and discard it immediately. If a tissue is not available, coughing or sneezing into the elbow is recommended. Hands should be washed after coughing or sneezing into the hands. Workers should turn away from others while coughing or sneezing and maintain distance from others when practical.

WORKPLACE SANITATION 

Restrooms should be well maintained, cleaned regularly, and stocked with soap or hand sanitizer. Frequently touched surfaces, including doorknobs, telephones, lunch areas, countertops, and equipment, should be cleaned and disinfected regularly according to label instructions. Potable water should be available, and sharing drinks, water bottles, or containers should be discouraged.

ACTION ITEMS: 

• Encourage sick workers to stay home. CDC guidance recommends that workers with a fever and respiratory symptoms remain at home until at least 24 hours after the fever ends, without the use of fever-reducing medication. A fever is generally defined as a temperature above 100 degrees Fahrenheit (37.8 degrees Celsius). Other symptoms may include a runny nose, body aches, headache, fatigue, diarrhea, or vomiting.

• Develop flexible leave policies that allow workers to stay home without penalty when they are ill. Review related human resources policies with employees, including sick leave, leave sharing or administrative leave options, childcare considerations, pay practices, and procedures for becoming ill while traveling for work.

• Establish clear procedures for managing workers or clients who become ill in the workplace and communicate those procedures to all employees. Designate at least one individual to assist ill workers and ensure employees know who to contact if someone becomes sick at work.

• Plan for how to separate ill individuals from others until they can leave the workplace. When appropriate and tolerated, a surgical mask may be provided to help reduce the spread of illness.

RESOURCES AND REFERENCES

OSHA Seasonal Flu Worker Guidance

https://www.osha.gov/seasonal-flu/non-healthcare-workers

OSHA Sanitation 

https://www.osha.gov/laws-regs/regulations/standardnumber/1910/1910.141

CDC Cleaning and Disinfecting

https://www.cdc.gov/hygiene/cleaning-disinfecting/index.html