Wednesday, October 29, 2014

The Costs of Unhealthy Workers

An investment in cleaning and the right cleaning products results in substantial returns.

Did you know, the costs associated with workers being ill or unhealthy costs businesses over $225.8 billion per year? That’s a lot of money. According to research done by ISSA in their whitepaper, “The Value of Clean: How Cleaning Improves Your Bottom Line,” businesses save money when they conduct operations in cleaner environments.

In their findings, ISSA discovered 7.7 days are taken per employee per year of sick leave, accounting for a decrease of 54% in productivity and output, and a 39% drop in sales and customer service. The overall loss in performance based on cold and flu symptoms such as dry eyes, itchy or watery eyes, dry throat, lethargy, headaches, and chest tightness is between 3-8% - and it’s not just the cold and flu that effects an employee’s productivity. Dust exposure alone affects a workers cognitively - such as typing, arithmetic, logical thinking, reasoning, memory, and creative thinking skills between 2-6%.

In comparison, when a business and work environment is clean and healthy – there is an 80% reduction in the probability of catching the common cold and influenza, and a 62% reduction in contaminated surfaces – and best of all, and overall decrease of 46% in absenteeism.

What’s the measurable value of keeping clean?

In the ISSA whitepaper they mention a case study conducted by HLW International LLP where they were able to create a formula to show you what the impact is on your bottom line.

Here’s the formula:

Formula

Now, here’s an example, with a company of 100 employees who average a salary of $25,000.

Sample

To further prove this theory, the Minnesota Department of Health’s report found that a clean environment will increase productivity by 2-8%.

All of this and a lot more on the impact of cleanliness on your bottom line can be found in the ISSA whitepaper here: The Value of Clean: How Cleaning Improves Your Bottom Line, where they cite more examples and studies supporting their findings above.

So, after you calculate the amount of money you can save by having a cleaner work environment – not to mention a safer work environment from virus and diseases that spread on surfaces in which you can prevent - isn’t it time to start disbursing the tools necessary to combat the dirtiness? Start by saving at Reliable Paper with our product line of Cleaning and Janitorial supplies.


ISSA is the world’s most recognized cleaning association, where members of a global community of more than 6,400 distributors, manufacturers, building service contractors, in-house service providers, and manufacturer representative companies come together and learn about the industry from over 90 years of experience and success.

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