When you’re in a bathroom at a restaurant, you are bound to see a sign that reads ‘Employees Must Wash Hands Before Returning to Work’.
When else should employees be washing their hands? The FDA advises that hands be washed after the following:
- Eating
- Drinking
- Using tobacco
- Coughing
- Sneezing
- Using tissue
- Preparing raw animal products
- Handling dirty equipment
- Touching the body (such as scratching your nose)
The ugly truth is that most restaurants don’t have 100% compliance on handwashing. Here are three steps you can take to increase employee handwashing behaviors at your restaurants.
Clearly Label All Handwashing Sinks
Of course, any sink can be used for handwashing, but not every sink should be used for dirty dishes. Clearly labeling handwashing sinks will help prevent cross contamination of pathogens. It will also make sure that nothing other than hands are washed in that sink.
Keep Handwashing Stations Fully Stocked
Handwashing stations should be checked throughout the day for supplies. The basics of every handwashing station are soap, disposable drying towels, and a trashcan to easily throw away any towels.
Install Handwashing Technology
A great way to ensure safe handwashing is to utilize technology. Installing automatic faucets throughout not only the bathroom but the kitchen will help stop the spread of germs. If you want to ensure that employees are washing their hands for an appropriate amount of time, timers and sensors can be installed on the faucets. To support handwashing compliance, the sensor can even send automated reports on the amount of time each person spends washing their hands.
It is essential to promote good handwashing behaviors in your restaurant. It’s the first step in reducing the spread of germs, allergens, and foodborne illnesses.
Download our Food Safety Ebook to learn how to protect your restaurant (and your brand) from the common sources of contamination.
The bathroom sign is only one moment
The sign on the restroom door covers returning to work. The FDA list in this article is wider: after eating, drinking, tobacco, coughing, sneezing, or using a tissue; after raw animal products; after dirty equipment; and after touching the body. A cook who washed up after the restroom and then handled raw meat still has to wash again before touching food that is ready to eat.
The three steps fail in ordinary ways. A sink labeled for hands does nothing if it is full of dishes. A station without soap, towels, and a trash can is not stocked. A timer or sensor only helps if someone looks at the report and follows up when the wash was too short.
Related reading
For more on restaurant food safety, read How to Pass a Restaurant Health Inspection: A Guide for Owners and Essential Temperature Control Tips for Restaurant Food Safety.