feature hospitality cleaning and hygiene
Keeping hotels clean and hygienic during a pandemic Hygiene and cleanliness often go hand in hand, but adoption and followthrough with measures like disinfection, handwashing, and hand-sanitiser use within commercial facilities were not as consistent before the COVID-19 pandemic. Without the widespread threat of infection, cleaning was previously more focused on appearance than on protecting public health and was not as strategic as it needs to be today.
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he pandemic has made it clear: consumers demand cleanliness, and this new emphasis, especially in places like hotels, is here to stay. Now, hotel owners and managers can be confident in their readiness against pathogens and reassure guests and employees by committing to cleanliness and effectively communicating their approach to the public.
Building trust through cleanliness Throughout the pandemic, many businesses have faced the challenge of restoring trust and assuring customers that they are doing everything in their power to keep them safe and healthy. According to PricewaterhouseCoopers, consumers are most influenced by their trust in a brand, which also includes places where they’re sure of safety and cleanliness. Thus, hotels must prioritise cleaning, disinfection, and infection prevention to give guests and visitors peace of mind. In addition to considering their guests, hotels must also take the necessary steps to reassure and retain employees. A recent survey found that only 14 percent of employees around the world are confident in the leadership of their CEOs and management regarding return-to-work policies. For those employees that have already returned to work, 42 percent
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African Cleaning Review November/December 2021
said safety measures enacted by management were either ineffective or not strictly enforced. Some companies have spent upwards of US$1 billion on personal protective equipment (PPE), cleaning procedure training, cleaning and disinfecting products, and other pandemic-related costs. During the height of the pandemic, it seemed necessary to invest in every strategy and solution. However, as we learn more about the way SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, spreads, we uncover that some of these measures can play into ‘hygiene theatre’. Hygiene theatre is the act of increasing hygiene protocols that may make guests feel safe, but don’t correlate with lowering the risk of infection. Managers should assess whether the cleaning procedures they’ve adopted at the onset of the pandemic still serve their needs and their stakeholders’ needs.
Communicating cleanliness Communicating new or revised protocols and safeguards to both guests and employees is extremely important. A recent report uncovered that nearly 9 in 10 (88%) consumers take note of the cleanliness of businesses they frequent often.
Furthermore, 86 percent of consumers would ideally like to see proof that public places such as restaurants, offices, businesses, gyms or schools are cleaned on a regular basis. Employees also worry about the level of cleanliness at their workplace. One survey uncovered that over half (60%) of people would leave their current role for a lower-paying, healthier work environment. In fact, it’s become quite common for people to ask potential employers about health and hygiene practices. Therefore, managers must properly communicate protocols and expectations among internal and external audiences to ensure that everyone feels as safe as possible when visiting or working in the hotel.
What can you do now? Managers can consider the strategies below to uphold cleanliness and highlight their hotel’s commitment to public health and safety, without falling for the trap of hygiene theatre: • Outline cleaning procedures and frequencies. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends fully cleaning and disinfecting a facility where a person has tested positive for COVID-19 within the past 24 hours. continues on page 12 >>
