Janitorial Challenge for Earth Day

For many Earth Day is just another opportunity to jump into the parade whether or not you actually share in the cause. The irony is that there are plenty of Greenwashers who see this annual event as little more than a marketing opportunity.
By: Green Clean Institute, Inc.
 
April 3, 2012 - PRLog -- Janitorial firms are simply notorious for Greenwashing.  A simple online survey of janitorial or cleaning websites will demonstrate that they all claim to be Green, but the truth is that they really don't care about anything more than impressing potential clients.

Want proof?  Why not take a trip to the janitor closet or storage area and look around.  Here are several ways to tell if your service is Green or Greenwashed.  

First, do you see 5 gallon buckets of floorstripper sitting around?  Is there any bleach-type products on the shelves?  Is the bowl cleaner an acid-type product?  Do you see numerous aerosol cans?  Even more, do you see insecticides and rodent poison there?

You might see the old fashion string mop or a tassled dust mop instead of the mcirofiber tools that should be in a Green service.  If possible, try to see if they are using HEPA vacuums instead of the old style dust-bag type.  In fact, can you find more than one or two random products that are Green certified?

The unfortunate truth is that you will almost always find that the brag exceeds the reality, and that means that your janitorial or cleaning service is little more than a Greenwashing pretender that doesn't understand the value of what a Green service offers.

The U.S. Labor Depart estimates that more than 30% of all buildings are toxic to the workers inside.  American businesses lose more than $60 billion in worker productivity due to poor indoor air quality.  Take note:  A clean building may not be a healthy building.

Do you ever wonder why you get the headache every afternoon?  Toxic air causes headache, tired eyes, and lethargy on a regular basis, but it has even greater health concerns.  Year after year of exposure to toxins is believed to bring on asthma. lung problems, and many other diseases that come on years and years later.

Nurses have a 30% greater chance to getting asthma from constant exposure to all types of chemicals.  It is important to now that the average cleaning service brings in hundreds of pounds of chemicals that are broadly spread around every evening.  This is an assault on the health of all who work in the building.  Of course, it is an unseen threat, but still deadly over time.

There are several sources for toxic air, but the cleaning service is one of the biggest.  Of course, this is all masked by chemical fragrances like the cherry smell in the bathroom that cover (but does not remove) the urine smell.  Even the fragrances sprayed through the office may be bad for your health.

If your cleaning service honestly knew that they hold the health of hundreds of workers in their hands, they would certainly Go Green.  To start, workers need to be trained using a credible Green training program.  Products and equipment needs to changed to the better Green options.  Finally, the cleaning service needs to be a proactive and dedicated Green service because they know the real value of Green cleaning is measured in the health of the employees that can last into their later years.

Janitorial service that have earned their Green certification from the Green Clean Institute [http://www.greencleaninstitute.com] have made a step in the right direction.  These companies must put their key employees through a proven training process that lays the foundation for a Green janitorial service.

Hiring a non-Green service, or uncertified cleaner, actually hurts everyone.  First of all, it condones the practice of Greenwashing.  Secondly, cleaning chemcials have an immediate impact on workers from the president of the company to the accountant on the second floor.  Third, longer term exposure keeps everyone from a better and longer life.

If the air could be turned into a visible liquid, we would find ourselves slogging through the day knee-deep in a tainted cesspool.  As long as we are healthy and have the strength of our youth, we can manage.  When we are not 100% and age has taken its toll. the threats start to win the battle and these folks gradually disappear to be replaced by newer, younger workers.

It makes an incredible difference that your cleaning service is Green certified.  This Earth Day, one of the best things any company can do is to hire a Green certified cleaning service.  No one may be able to measure the real value of this decision, but if you are able to enjoy health in your later years ... you'll be glad that you made the choice for health instead of lowest bid.

# # #

Green Clean Institute [http://www.greencleaninstitute.com] is one of the more well-known and respected Green education and certification programs in the U.S. and internationally.
End
Source:Green Clean Institute, Inc.
Email:***@greencleaninstitute.com Email Verified
Zip:65402
Tags:Earth Day, April 22, Green Cleaning, Green Janitorial, Janitorial, Cleaning Service
Industry:Janitorial, Cleaning, Maintenance
Location:Rolla - Missouri - United States
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Page Updated Last on: Apr 05, 2012
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