To the checklist

Define clear rules of conduct

With a number of interventions, you can ensure social distancing and hygiene rules are respected, both between staff and during contacts with clients and suppliers.

People walk in and out of your business, but are you able to ensure they keep the necessary distance when they cross paths? Map where incoming and outgoing movement occurs in your rooms: kitchen, dining room, reception area and so on. Adjust where necessary to keep contact to a minimum. Another option may be to create separate entrances and exits by temporarily opening an unused door or emergency exit.

Ensure there is sufficient distance between employees, clients, suppliers, representatives, etc. at all times. Place a physical barrier or markings at the right distance.

Tip: Hang this poster in clearly visible places to remind employees and visitors of the basic rules.

Limit the number of clients in your business to ensure social distancing is respected. Hang up a clear sign stating the maximum number of people who may be present in a room at the same time.

Do you work with table service? Check the additional measures

Encourage your clients to pay electronically, and also use electronic cash tickets as much as possible. If this is not possible, put the ticket on the table or counter to avoid hand contact.

Specific for hotels: Your receptionist fills in the log and avoids hand contact when handing over and taking back badges or keys. You can find more tips for checking in and out here.

Do you work with table service? Check the additional measures

Remind employees and visitors of the hygiene measures as often as possible. Did you know you can use our ready-made posters about coughing and sneezing, hand hygiene and general precautions against coronavirus for this?

Important: Your employees should always have enough handkerchiefs to cover their nose and mouth while blowing their nose, sneezing and/or coughing. They must throw the used handkerchief away into a closeable bin immediately, and then wash their hands straight away.

Take a look at our other useful documents

Lock the doors of your hospitality business when you are not open so suppliers can’t simply walk in and out to deliver their goods. If possible, use this step-by-step plan to ensure deliveries run smoothly:


Step 1: the supplier rings the doorbell or contacts the person in charge by telephone.

Step 2: the delivery is placed at the door, preferably shielded (e.g. under an awning, in a letterbox, in a plastic box).

Step 3: your employee brings the delivery inside and does a visual check.

Step 4: your employee verbally confirms that the delivery has arrived correctly and reports any shortcomings.

Step 5: if necessary, your employee will inform you of the delivery via email (i.e. shortcomings). Confirmations and receipts can be emailed or placed in a letterbox by the supplier.

Only receive external parties (e.g. suppliers, freelancers) physically in your organisation for essential activities. In addition, limit their presence in terms of number of people, duration and spaces visited.
 

Tip: make agreements about this before restarting, and email your instructions to all concerned.

Do you work as an external party (e.g. flexi-jobber, interim worker, occasional employee, freelancer) in a hospitality business, or do you have to carry out work there? If so, it is important that you receive the necessary instructions in advance.

You will find more tips about this in this information sheet

Start up your workplace safely

From switching on machines to rearranging meeting rooms and adjusting emergency plans: our information sheets show you what to pay attention to.

You can limit the spread of the coronavirus by ventilating your rooms properly. Opening the windows regularly is the message. If you have a ventilation system, ensure regular maintenance and have the filters replaced or cleaned when they are due. Do not use individual fans that can spread the virus.

See our poster on ventilation during Corona.

Additional rules and guidance have recently been developed, including on the measurement of CO2 concentrations. Find here a list of a number of CO2 meters whose specifications meet these guidelines.

Hotel rooms should be well ventilated daily, and for at least 1 hour after checkout. Rooms without windows may not be booked. Keep also the pest control plan in mind.

Read more on our blog

Check which doors can be left open. These may be able to provide extra ventilation, for example, or act as an additional entrance or exit. Always take fire safety into account, as well as the risk of unwanted visitors or theft. Close doors that must stay permanently closed.
 

Important: Place a notice on all closed doors. This will prevent people grabbing the door handle to feel if it is actually locked.

To guarantee social distancing, make sure the kitchen, dining room, reception area, and other rooms are laid out properly. You can do this using floor markings, pictograms, tape, and so on. Physical barriers can be placed between work stations which are close to one another. Instruct your staff not to enter rooms in which they are not required.

  • You will find more tips for rearranging your kitchen here.
  • This information sheet contains guidelines for the organisation of your dining room.

Place a plexiglass partition between the cash register to prevent direct contact between the cash register operator and clients. Assign only one employee to work the cash register. If an exchange is required, disinfect all surfaces afterwards (such as keyboards, chair and counter). Work with electronic cash tickets as much as possible. If this is not possible, put the ticket on the counter or table to avoid hand contact.

Read more about this in this information sheet

Have your clients call in their orders as much as possible. Pre-payment or contactless payment on delivery are preferable. If you are delivering to a home address, avoid direct contact with the client by placing the bags outside the door. Every vehicle (car, delivery van, bicycle, scooter, etc.) should be operated by one employee only. If this is not possible, disinfect and clean the vehicle when switching drivers.

Are you temporarily providing take-aways or home delivery? Then you do not need registration from the FASFC. You must adhere to specific guidelines.

The risk of becoming contaminated with the coronavirus via food is minimal. Especially when strict personal hygiene, food and workplace hygiene measures are taken. Clean hard surfaces regularly with hot water and soap. Always use clean cloths for wiping surfaces. Dishcloths, towels and tea towels should be washed at a high temperature (at least 60 °C) and make sure to run the dishwasher at 60 °C or higher.
 

Before restarting you business, check the shelf life of the food you still have in stock. Discard any prepared and opened food that has passed its expiration date.

Strictly follow the guidelines from the Federal Agency for the Safety of the Food Chain (FASFC)

Before reopening, check your pest repellentsaccording to the pest control plan. In keeping with the revised working conditions and circulation within your dining room and kitchen, you may need to make temporary changes to this plan. Empty fly traps, and have your pest control company check traps and baits if necessary.

When restarting work activities, always check for employees who are out of sight or hearing range of colleagues. If this is the case, these persons must have an alarm device (e.g. mobile phone, telephone, walkie-talkie, fire alarm, etc.). 

Only essential meetings that cannot be organised remotely may take place on-site. In this case, choose a space where you can respect social distancing and keep the number of participants to a minimum. Keep an attendance list of each physical meeting for one month.

 

Use this poster to inform employees about the maximum number of people that may be present in the room. Hang it on the entrance door(s).

For those who are less mobile or need to transport heavy supplies from one floor to another, the lift is an essential tool. However, it is a small space and maintaining a sufficient distance is not always easy.
 

Tip: motivate your employees to choose the stairs as much as possible by hanging this poster in a highly visible place.

Also review these measures for safe lift use

Communal transport organised by the employer: Respect the greatest possible distance between each person during transport, limit if possible the number of people in the vehicle and/or provide a separation (in a flexible material and with care for visibility and safety); Use masks in addition. Ensure that ventilation and aeration systems in means of transport are properly operated and maintained and pay particular attention to hygiene inside vehicles used by different people.

Those travelling by public transport (train, tram, bus) must follow the instructions provided by the transport companies. And for everyone twelve and older, wearing a face mask that covers both nose and mouth is compulsory on public transport, to include in the station, on platforms, and on board trains.
 

A face mask is now also mandatory in certain (sections of) cities.

More concrete tips can be found in this information sheet

Social distancing is also relevant during breaks. Therefore, remove chairs until the necessary distance between employees is guaranteed. Have them sit diagonally across from one another at a table, organise lunch breaks in shifts, or set up additional break rooms. Taking breaks or lunch outdoors is also an option if the weather and infrastructure allow it. 
 

TIP: Cups, plates and cutlery should preferably be cleaned in the dishwasher. In this case, the virus has no chance of survival. If there is no dishwasher on the work floor, make sure you clean everything manually with a clean sponge.

This checklist provides even more tips and tricks

If you have a changing room in your business, or if you make showers available to staff, you must take specific measures regarding hygiene and social distancing.

View the tips and tricks in this information sheet

Your equipment and appliances may have stood still for a while. Please use the manual to restart them. This will help prevent unwanted incidents.
 

Start up your (industrial) dishwasher
Standing still for long periods can cause dehydration, bacteria formation and crystallisation in your dishwasher. Follow the manufacturer’s guidelines to avoid this. If you have operated the machine on a weekly basis, this is normally sufficient. When restarting, make sure your detergents are connected properly. Before you actually load dishes, run your dishwasher through the cleaning programme a few times.

This information sheet provides more information about the safe start-up of equipment

It is beyond dispute that everyone must adhere to the prescribed instructions in the event of a fire. If you cannot guarantee social distancing at your existing muster point during an evacuation, provide an additional location.

More information can be found in this info document

If water sources (for example, taps, sprinklers, showers, humidifiers) or pipe sections connecting them do not have fresh water flowing through them for more than a week, legionella can develop in them. This bacteria is the leading cause of Pontiac fever and Legionnaires’ disease.

This step-by-step plan shows you how to restart your water sources safely

Keep the work environment clean

In addition to adequate hand hygiene for your employees, thorough maintenance of the workplace and equipment is also crucial to avoid spreading the coronavirus.

When cleaning, absolute priority is to be given to surfaces, door handles, switches, telephones, handles, equipment and appliances, chairs and tables in the dining room, etc. Work equipment and appliances used by several employees must also be cleaned and disinfected regularly. To reinforce this, your cleaning programme may need to be reorganised, both in terms of frequency and cleaning equipment. Before the reopening on 8 June, ensure that the materials and areas used by staff and guests are cleaned thoroughly. Disinfect the handle at least every 30 minutes if the door cannot remain open.
 

TIP: Cups, plates and cutlery should preferably be cleaned in the dishwasher. In this case, the virus has no chance of survival. If there is no dishwasher on the work floor, make sure you clean everything manually with a clean sponge.

 

Specific for hotels: Avoid cross-contamination when cleaning your hotel rooms. Make sure your employees disinfect their hands immediately after they have cleaned a room. Preferable use the same cleaning staff to always clean the same floor and rooms. If they work with gloves, ensure they change them before entering the next room. Of course, brushes, vacuum cleaners, buckets, cleaning trolleys and other materials must always be cleaned as well. The same procedure also applies if you have maintenance work carried out in different rooms.

How to take off gloves correctly? Read the instructions.

Post clearly readable instructions about hand hygiene over each washbasin in your hospitality business. When entering your business, ask clients to disinfect their hands using alcohol gel. Be sure to emphasise the importance of good toilet hygiene. Specifically: leave the toilet clean, flush and close the toilet lid. The use of sanitary facilities for non-guests is prohibited.
 

Tip: Points for attention for bleach as a cleaning agent and disinfectant.

 

Download our hand hygiene poster

Provide sufficient quantities of soap – preferably in soap dispensers – paper towels and closable bins, if possible with pedal control. If the distance between the workplace and the washing facility is too great, provide hand alcohol gel (preferably one individual pack per employee). Place a pump with alcohol gel at the cash register or reception for clients.
 

Avoid using electric hand dryers or towels.

These preventive measures apply to ethanol (the basis of hand alcohol gel) in large quantities (from 5l)

First and foremost: the risk of corona contamination via waste is minimal. Correct, efficient waste collection is crucial to avoid additional hygiene and health risks. Remove full bins or bin bags from the work floor immediately. Waste collectors must wear gloves.

How to take off gloves correctly? Read the instructions

Download the document here.

Processing linen correctly

Keep a close eye on the health of your employees

Those who exhibit symptoms must go home. But what about the mental health of your employees? And can your emergency responders (First Aiders) still work safely?

This decision tree shows the steps to be followed. If the employee tests positive, then the contact-tracing process begins. This brochure summarises the required measures.

Employees who are mentally troubled (for example, stress, workload, work-life combination), feel anxious or are mourning the loss of a loved one can contact the Mensura psycho team during office hours for a confidential conversation.
 

We can also activate a 24/7 helpline for your staff. Would you like to know more about this? Send an email to psychosociale-aspecten@mensura.be.

Frequently asked questions related to coronavirus and mental well-being

Even if your non-Dutch speaking employees have mastered our language reasonably well, they may still lack certain nuances. This can lead to misunderstandings. Therefore, provide basic information in the native language of your employees.

Download posters, FAQs and audio files with corona info in different languages

It is important that your employees know how to care for themselves in the event of injury

More details can be found in this info brochure.

Face masks are part of the lockdown exit strategy. It is important that we wear them, but it is crucial that we continue to respect the hierarchy of the prevention measures. Specifically: when the first measure in the hierarchy cannot be respected, only then does the measure in the level below come into force.
 

Face masks are at the bottom of the ranking and are only recommended if all other measures are not feasible.
 

Preventive measures according to hierarchy 

  1. Stay home, especially if you are sick.
  2. Limit your physical social contacts.
  3. Work from home whenever possible if the job allows for this.
  4. Wash your hands often with soap and water.
  5. Maintain a distance of at least 1.5 metres, indoors and outside.
  6. Wear a face mask on public transport and in crowded public places or follow the applicable local and regional guidelines.

Infographic: 'How to wear a face mask safely'

 

Here you can find more information about face masks

Do you have a question about the specific situation in your workplace?

We are happy to help you! Get in touch with your trusted contact or our regional office.

Sector-specific e-learning courses for your employees

Do you want to inform your employees about how they can work safely and healthily during these corona times? You can with our sector-specific e-learning sessions.

Find out more about e-learning for your sector