2020 has shown us more than ever that health is never a given. We need to be ever more vigilant in making sure we all stay safe, and the responsibility is even higher for business owners. It is your responsibility as a business owner to make sure your employees and customers stay safe, in every way that’s within your control.
The Coronavirus and other threats could endanger people on your premises and leave you liable for legal repercussions at worst, or slow down your business operations at best. To make sure you keep everyone safe while they are your responsibility, here are five top tips for public safety.
Check employee health regularly
You can’t make decisions on health and safety unless you are regularly aware of the current situation on your premises. Using PPE and health monitors to check up on the health of your staff is useful for doing just that, especially when it comes to stopping the spread of Coronavirus. COVID-19 influences, amongst other things, the functionality of the lungs.
One way to keep monitor of your health status in relation to heart and lung function is by checking the heart rate and oxygen saturation of people regularly. Using a Fingertip Pulse Oximeter to measure blood oxygen level via the fingertip can give you an indication of employee health and guard against infections spreading through your workforce and even affecting customers.
Stock the right equipment
Make sure that all medical supplies and PPE are fully stocked as needed for your workplace. If you are in close quarters, you need to provide staff with masks and ensure that customers entering are also wearing masks. Medical supplies relating to sanitation should also be made available to occupants. Objective studies have proven that a whole host of harmful diseases, not least COVID-19, can be prevented through strong hygiene, so don’t leave it out of your health measures.
Protect digital assets
It’s not just the physical health of your employees and customers you need to protect; if you store any of their personal data digitally, it’s your responsibility to keep that safe too. The FBI has seen a 300% increase in cybercrime reports since the beginning of the pandemic, likely due to reduced cybersecurity standards due to home working. It has never been more important to make sure your business data is protected online.
LifeRaft offers you, your data, and the people under your care digital intelligence protection. They use opensource data to offer services in software quality assurance, product design, cloud computing, and data science and database management, to name but a few. The platform can identify and protect you from digital threats before you even know they’re there. Keep your employees and customer safe on and offline with their protection.
Make instructions clear
If you’ve introduced new measures to keep people safe during the pandemic, make sure they are clear and easy to understand. For your employees, hold regular safety briefings to make sure everyone knows where they stand. To inform customers, put up plenty of signage, and encourage your employees to impress the importance of the safety measures on new visitors.
Lead by example
You will be who both customers and employees look to for advice and guidance. Communicating is important, but what can work even better is leading by example. Use your own behavior to influence their wellness; the only major difference in how you should behave from how others behave is that you should be doing it first. If you are doing all the right things, then the people around you will soon follow suit as well.
