Green Premiums for Janitorial Business
Since the “Orange Era” when citric cleaning products were first introduced to the public, there has been a stubborn mindset that environmentally-friendly products were more expensive and less effective. This was true, but things have changed over the last ten to twenty years. Going Green is generally more expensive, but that cost is estimated at about 2-4% more expense when taken over the whole project. Fortunately, the new “Green Era” products are actually as good as or better than the conventional product used for cleaning.
One of the issues of the Green transition for any company is the costs for any project, and it is interesting to learn that “Going Green” has other benefits that can offset and overwhelm the modest cost of Green cleaning. We all want a clean building, but we should also want a healthy building, and using a Green Clean janitorial service is the way to have both. In the end, you will find that this transition is a financially-smart decision.
Traditional cleaning methods have obvious health concerns because the chemicals being used by most cleaning services are dangerous. Constant exposure to these chemicals (like second-hand smoke) can not only hurt your employees but impact the bottom line of you company. By removing unhealthy practices, the company will certainly discover that the financial benefits are very rewarding.
There is a hidden, but obvious, cost to employee absenteeism. It is obvious that your employees are needed to handle business and develop revenue. It may seem that health costs are the concern for the insurance, but your company actually pays for all these costs in increased premiums. Some costs are paid for by the employees, the fact is that companies still pay for health costs in the health insurance premiums. It is a basic fact that healthier employees should equate to lower insurance rates.
Another related Green Premium is the alertness and productivity of the students or workers in the facility. Most of us know the feeling of a smell that triggers a headache or irritation. When I would go bowling in the smoke-laden bowling ally, I would inevitably get a headache. Fumes from diesel will cause other to react badly. Keeping your people on the top of their game is a big part of a profitable company.
When considering the larger picture, the health and vitality of any company’s workers has an even larger impact in the world. The chronically sick people ad to the societal burden and will certainly affect our taxes. The trash and waste from our companies must be handled by the government, and that will lead to more taxes. We are paying many times over for sick people who might have lived better lives.
As we consider the Green Premium, it is realized in savings through healthy employees. Health insurance, health costs, and taxes are part of the overall equation that we pay in one form or another. Therefore, the 2-4% costs of moving to a Green workplace seems powerfully overwhelmed by the health and tax cost savings.
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