It's true that most people find shoe covers silly. But shoe covers are not about aesthetics, they’re about practicality and making sure workers can do their job responsibly and professionally.
Choosing to wear shoe covers is showing that you pay attention to all the small details. Shoe covers are one of the tools the detail-oriented use to make sure the job is done right, helping workers keep their mind on the job, not the footprints they’re leaving.
Below you can find a list of all benefits offered by shoe covers.
1. They keep footwear clean
Especially, for some professionals, like surgeons, their work conditions may have them standing in blood, or worse, while they do their job. When working in areas or rooms that threaten to create a mess of your footwear can create extra work. For many in this category, constant cleaning becomes a requirement if shoe covers are not used, wasting hours in the long run. Added to that, this messy footwear will create tracks that need to be cleaned as well, and even put off clients, customers, or the family members of the person you just did surgery on.
2. They keep the room clean/sterile
Sometimes it can be less about you, and more about the room. For people working with machinery or animals in a sensitive setting, shoes cover helps you protect the room from the bacteria and dust on shoes. In cases such as these, shoe covers can mean the difference between success and failure, as they can save time from cleaning and also money.
3. They prevent cross-contamination
Wherever workers walk, they can carry with them germs. For most this isn’t a problem, but for those dealing with sensitive materials, whether flora or fauna cross-contamination can cause huge complications
With industrial gardening, for example, employees move from garden to garden, risking cross-contamination between areas if proper procedures are not applied. That could mean the movement of insects or diseases from plant to plant spreading infestation and harming crops. In this case, the worker is doing more harm than good. However, shoe covers keep both contaminations from shoes and contaminated shoes from spreading the disease.
4. Customers appreciate it
In some countries, like our neighbors to the south, wearing shoes indoors is completely acceptable. For Canadians, however, watching people, especially contractors with their clunky work boots, come in without removing their footwear is discomforting, or even considered downright rude. Also, some religions have rules regarding the footwear you can wear in a home or a particular room.
By donning shoe covers over your footwear, you are showing respect and regard for your client and their property. It’s details like this that separate the quick and dirty from the clean professional.
5. They keep you safe
Your boots are more than a piece of your wardrobe, they’re an important part of keeping you safe on the job, an integral part of your PPE (Personal Protective Equipment). And taking off PPE is never a good option. By slipping shoe covers over your boots, you can alleviate both problems, keeping your feet protected, while maintaining a clean environment for your customers.
6. They protect the flooring
Whether you’re a cleaner who’s just shampooed the carpets or a real estate agent who’s showing houses to potential buyers, the flooring of your workplace can be incredibly important, especially when the condition of the flooring is part, or all, of what you sell.
Shoe covers can help to protect the flooring, keeping hard soles from scuffing on tiles, or prematurely wearing through carpeting.
7. They’re faster than taking off boots
Every worker has another place to be, another job to do, and the faster they can move between jobs, the faster the work gets done. There are many industries, where cleanliness is essential, and dirty work boots can cause problems.
While there are various options to deal with the spread of dirt and germs, the quickest and easiest one is shoe covers. When comparing them to cleaning, or changing your footwear, shoe covers are faster and easier than any other option. That time saved can also mean money saved, and also less chance of workers stumbling, tripping, or falling on the job. Both of those are wins for any company.
The Big Reason to Wear Shoe Covers
The biggest reason to wear shoe covers, is that it is an effective tool in your kit for keeping your work area, and your shoes clean, showing your clients, your employees, and everyone else that your business is one that cares about the detail.
Don’t let small considerations keep you from accessing every tool you have to make your business the best it can be. With the help of shoe covers, you can save time, save clean up, and impress clients and customers.
