Grocery store owners and managers must make sure steps are taken to protect the health of new and current grocery store workers.
Hamilton, OH – Grocery stores are one of the few industries hiring new staffers right now. Kroger is hiring 10,000 workers. Target, Safeway, and Stop N Shop are also hiring.
Walmart is taking the most significant steps of all, hiring more than 150,000 new employees for its stores and distribution sites in the U.S.
With this hiring boom, grocery store owners and managers must also make sure steps are taken to protect the health of new and current store employees.
“This will also help slow the spread of the disease,” according to Mike Perazzo with Kaivac, manufacturers of professional supermarket cleaning systems.
To help protect the health of grocery store workers, Perazzo suggests the following:
- Implement social distancing strategies for store workers. “This may mean limiting how many staffers are working in a storage or warehouse area at one time.”
- Assign staffers to regularly clean and sanitize high-touch surfaces in all backroom work areas and throughout the store.
- Require the wearing of masks. “More N-95 masks are becoming available. Make sure you purchase them from a reputable vendor.”
- Staffers should properly dispose of all “one-use” masks and gloves.
- Increase closure hours to allow for deep cleaning of the entire store. Shorter hours also allow workers to restock without rushing. “It’s when workers are rushing that they are prone to make a mistake that could harm their health.”
- Make sure workers take ample rest breaks.
- Do not allow customers to bring reusable bags into the store.
- Workers should wash hands frequently, for 20 seconds, with soap and warm water.
- Know the difference between handwashing and hand sanitizing. “Handwashing removes pathogens on the hands and embedded in the skin; sanitizers just kill surface level pathogens.”
Finally, Perazzo suggests increasing cleaning frequencies for refrigerated display cases because they can become so soiled during the course of the day.
“Systems are now available so these can be cleaned in-house. Soiled [refrigerated] display cases can breed germs and leave a bad impression on customers, negating all the steps the store is taking to protect the health of workers as well as customers.”
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About Kaivac, Inc.
Kaivac is the developer of the No-Touch Cleaning®, OmniFlex™ Crossover Cleaning systems. These systems are specifically designed for use in supermarkets, grocery stores, convenience stores, and fast-food outlets.
For more information, contact Kaivac Global Head Quarters at www.kaivac.com, email info@kaivac.com, or call 513-887-4600.
For more information in Europe, Middle East and Africa, visit www.kaivac-emea.com, email office@kaivac-emea.com, or call +43 6216 4524 15
