COVID-19 Coronavirus
Safety steps we are taking to protect your home and family from the coronavirus
In these trying times, we hope we find you and your family healthy! The coronavirus outbreak across our country continues to expand, and there is a lot of uncertainty in the world right now.
We want to let you know that we are not taking this virus lightly, and we have made some changes to our services to ensure you and your family’s safety. The changes we have made related to the Coronavirus are always under consideration of the latest recommendations of national and local health officials.
Our technicians now have a powerful disinfectant and sanitizer in addition to their other cleaning supplies. Not only will this be used to disinfect our cleaning equipment before and after each home is cleaned, but it will also be used on high-risk, high-touch areas in your home.
These high touch areas are things such as door handles and light switches and our new cleaning protocols can help protect your health and safety. We also use products that meet the criteria of the EPA specifically for use against the coronavirus.
These products will be used in conjunction with our regular cleaning, polishing, dusting, mopping, vacuuming and cleaning services. We want to offer the best to our clients and assure them that we are taking the required precautions against the spread of harmful germs and bacteria.
Preventing cross-contamination
As you might expect, our cleaning technicians can clean multiple locations on a given day, and you may be concerned about cross-contamination. Preventing cross-contamination both within and between jobs is built into the way we do business. Many of the practices that help prevent issues with cross-contamination are not new to our cleaning technicians. Rest assured that our technicians are well trained in preventing cross-contamination while cleaning homes. Our employees will disinfect hands and put on gloves immediately prior to entering each home. They will also be wearing face mask at all jobs going forward. Gloves are changed during the cleaning as well to prevent cross-contamination between different areas of the home.
Sponges, cleaning cloths, and magic erasers are used at one job and then either disposed of or bagged separately to be returned to the office for disinfection. Equipment such as vacuums or scrub brushes are thoroughly disinfected with the sanitation and disinfecting products we listed above in between each job as well.
Adjusting our cleaning technician schedules with more
solo routes to promote social distancing
Based on the most recent business guidelines from the CDC on social distancing, we have changed the way we do the schedule to incorporate more solo technician routes. We have also limited the days our technicians come into the office to pick-up supplies and route information. While we will still maintain some 2-person routes for jobs that are too large to be cleaned by an individual technician, most of our technicians will be working alone for all or most of the day.
Your cleaning times may increase, but it is in everyone’s best interest to prevent any potential spread of the Coronavirus. We appreciate your understanding as we implement this policy.
We maintain at least a 6-foot distance from your pets to keep them safe as well
While cleaning your homes, our technicians will maintain at least a 6-foot distance from any occupants. This will include your pets. Currently, there is no consensus on whether or not this virus can be transmitted by our pets, but until we know more, we will err on the side of caution. If you can, please crate pets during the cleaning to minimize contact with our technicians. This will help us reduce contact with your pets and can help us clean your home faster.
Paid Sick Leave for our Cleaning Team
All employees who are eligible will receive paid sick leave at this time of crisis. We make it clear to employees that they are to stay home if they aren’t feeling well, without risking their job or paycheck. Many employees have PTO in addition to sick pay, and we are educating all employees on additional benefit packages if they do need to take time off if they or a family member becomes ill. Currently, no one at our company has contracted the virus, nor been in contact with someone who has. Our technicians are as concerned about getting sick as we know you must be, but they also want to have work if they are healthy.
All of these changes reflect the latest business recommendations from the CDC and local health professionals. We will continue to monitor their recommendations, as well as best practices within our industry as things progress.
Cleaning is an Essential Service
If you or a member of your household has had COVID-19 or tested positive for the coronavirus, please cancel all cleanings until you or they have been symptom-free for at least two weeks. You must let us know, we care about your safety, our staff, and the community as a whole. Taking these measures can help us prevent the further spread of the virus.
In the meantime, having your home professionally cleaned is an important component in overall defense against the spread of the virus, and we will continue to provide this essential service along with the quality you have come to expect.
In fact, during this time we would love it if you could share our name with your friends and family. If you know someone who could benefit from our services, please send them our way. Gift cards are also a great option to spread the cleaning love, and they can be easily purchased online.
The Short Version
Employees
Employees will work on a voluntary basis. If an employee or anyone living in their home is experiencing any flu-like symptoms they will not report to work that day. Additionally, employees will fill out this short questionaire on their phone before beginning each job:
- What is your current temperature?
- Do you have any of the following symptoms?
(Coughing, Soar throat, Shortness of breath)
If they are running a fever or experiencing any of the above symptoms then we will send the employee home and reschedule the service.
Clients
We’re recommending that people who:
- Have medical issues that may increase the severity of a COVID-19 infection
- Have come into contact with COVID-19 patients
Refrain from restarting service with “A Better House Cleaning Company LLC” at this time.
Availability Limited
We are slowly opening to groups of 10 clients at a time. If you want to have service started as soon as possible, please let us know and we will put you on the short list to get you on our schedule as soon as possible.
Sanitizing Procedures
Before beginning each job we are:
- Sanitizing the vacuum and mop handles
- Sanitizing the handles of spray bottles
- As always, only freshly cleaned and sanitized cleaning cloths and mop covers will enter your home
Keeping Our Employees Safe
Cleaners are provided:
- Thermometers
- Face masks
- Hand sanitizer
- Sanitizing wipes
- Rubbing alcohol in a spray bottle
- Disposable gloves
Additional Sanitation
We will sanitize these high touch areas, at every job, using 70% rubbing alcohol:
- Door handles
- Faucets
- Railings
- Light switches
- Toilet handles
- Refrigerator & microwave handles
When ” A Better House Cleaning Company LLC” employee enters a home the very first thing that they will do is walk directly to the sink and wash their hands with warm soapy water for 30 seconds. They will then sanitize the door handle, water faucet, and anything else such as a light switch that may have been touched before they washed their hands. Cleaning technicians will wash their hands no less than every hour while cleaning your home.
The US Department of Labor classifies Home Cleaners as being at low risk of contracting COVID-19 in the workplace.