News / Business
The Green Janitorial Hoax
Maybe the Most Greenwashed Industry
Green is not found in a bottle of reformulated cleanser, but in the practices of the janitorial workforce that are frankly the last and lagging piece of this puzzle. To illustrate, could a person buy a great set of tools and immediately become a great mechanic? Or, could a person buy a high quality set of golf clubs and enter the Masters Tournament? Could a lady buy a size two dress and magically fit her size ten body into it? What this illustrates is that buying an item does not make you something that you are not.
A truly Green program means that the workforce needs a working knowledge of Green practices along with the new supply of Green products. The fact is that the workers in a janitorial service are far more important than the choice of products. There are dozens of new procedures that are required for a Green janitorial service that include “Dwell Time,” microfiber use, and how to handle dusting an office.
Greenwashing is a trend across America. Like working on your own engine, Green certification is not as easy as it sounds. The process is requires more than a token effort, but a change in the way business is done. In most janitorial services, Going Green seems to be passed on to the workers by kind of osmosis and undefined training protocol. This, quite frankly, means that most Green janitorial services are well-intended frauds to the customers that they serve. Their Green status is little more than a false veneer that has little depth in the character of the people charged with carrying out the Green mandates being passed down to these ill-equipped workers.
There is only one true Green Clean credential in the market today is the federal trademark offered by the Green Clean Institute. (www.GreenCleanInstitute.com) It is necessary to understand that the janitorial world is in transition from a “task oriented” business to a superior “service oriented” business. Janitorial services have new mandates, higher expectations, and are expected to provide Green program that will protect the safety, health, and future of all those who inhabit our buildings.
The word custodian has renewed meaning as we realize that we are expecting this often-ignored group to handle the challenges of our day and render services at a higher level than ever before. There is a charge to keep, a duty to render, and a lot at stake for any janitorial service in this new and Green age. Green janitor fraudsters are going to eventually hit the wall as questions of reliable performance are asked and evaluations become more common.
The Green Business League encourages businesses to make contract choices on more than price. Including a Green certification requirement in the RFP will bring a better quality of services to the bidding process. It is obvious that the Green movement is a permanent direction that places more emphasis on the health of the workers than the shine of the floor. Businesses are now including a Green Clause in more and more RFPs that require that janitorial service have a reputable Green certification.
