Rethinking Open-Floor Plans
Open office plans previously gained popularity in workplaces. Now, businesses may be considering ways to break up office space and keep people apart. High partitions and Plexiglas shields could be part of this solution. The before scenario of working at common tables or shrinking the distance between workstations may become workstations and desks that maintain the recommended distance with a separation barrier.
Other suggestions could be discouraging crowding, perhaps requesting, for example, that employees go from floor to floor using internal staircases and reducing elevator usage.
The workplace layouts enforcing safer distances can also be supported by controlled access measures to facilities. Some of these may include:
- Controlling entry points, including deliveries
- Reconfiguring gathering and lobby areas for social distancing
- Communicating building protocols through signage and floor markings
- Considering screening stations as people enter the premises
- Providing sanitizer, wipes, and PPE as appropriate
- Disabling touch screens
Making Common Areas Safer
At one time, workplaces were built for function and productivity. Now, safety is expected to play an important role. So, for example, a small room used for meetings might need to be repurposed for a single person’s use.
To this end, signage could play an important role in reminding workers and visitors of safety measures. It could be placed in common areas promoting worker safety by emphasizing basic infection prevention measures, including posting hand-washing signs in restrooms. Signs (including general signage, wall signs, and floor signs) could be posted in building entrances and lobbies, telling people about safety measures and policies, and be used as wayfinding measures, helping guide people through safer routes in a workplace.
Some other precautions employers may want to take for common areas include:
- Providing clean hand washing facilities.
- Offering alcohol-based hand sanitizers when regular facilities are not available.
- Removing magazines and papers from receptions and common rooms.
- Reminding staff not to share cups, plates or cutlery.
- Making sure ventilation systems are working properly.
Dedicated to Cleanliness
While businesses used to be careful about cleanliness, a fervent dedication to it may now be necessary. Consider increasing the frequency and thoroughness of sanitizing measures. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) offers its guidelines for cleaning and disinfecting facilities. Its recommendations include:
- Cleaning with soap and water and then using a disinfectant
- Practicing routine cleaning of frequently touched surfaces
- Putting wipeable covers over electronics when possible
- Follow manufacturers’ recommendations for cleaning and disinfecting electronics
The CDC recommends that you prepare a plan of action if someone in the workplace contracts the coronavirus. Consider closing off certain areas in response until cleaning and disinfecting as recommended by the CDC can be performed.