An office is a space for employees to work and be productive. But what if that space isn’t optimized to drive productivity? In this guide, we will show you how to create a safe and pest-free workplace.
Most of our customers and partners know us for providing reliable pest and wildlife services. But many don’t know that we offer services beyond homes. We’re just a little silent here, but we’ve worked with big companies with office spaces to maintain. These offices operate on weekends daily, more than eight hours per day.
In fact, we are working with BOMA Greater Minneapolis, which is known as a trade association that represents commercial real estate interests in Minneapolis and its suburbs. Their organization members are professionals from the office, medical, industrial retail, and mixed-use, one of 100 North American and nine overseas affiliates of BOMA International.
As the sixth largest BOMA in the country in a state with 115 million square feet of commercial real estate, our membership with BOMA helps us be seen by a strong network of decision-makers. BOMA is home to Minnesota’s most significant and minor operators globally.
With our involvement with BOMA, we can contact different commercial clients, which helps us better network our services. We always want to help and reach businesses that don’t have access or visibility to an all-around pest control and wildlife service.
There are many reasons why HR managers and executive leaders should invest in maintenance and prevention plans for pest and wildlife control. Office spaces are used more frequently four years after the pandemic halted. Pests and wildlife bugging an office space affects your employees’ health, safety, and productivity.
In this guide, we will explain why effective pest control maintenance is essential for your office spaces.
Recognizing Common Workplace Pests
On a normal workday, your employees go about their day, bring their coffees and lunches to work, and call it a day. Pests and Wildlife aren’t something they think about. They mostly focus on their tasks and find ways to be more productive. However, sickness also comes from office spaces in some cases, and preventative maintenance is sometimes overlooked. Now it’s time to know the typical office pests and how they can affect your employee’s health and well-being.
- Ants – Attracted to food crumbs or sugary items often left in kitchens or workstations.
- Cockroaches – thrive in dark, warm places, especially around kitchens, bathrooms, and garbage bins.
- Rodents (mice and rats) – Often find their way inside through small gaps, attracted by food and warmth.
- Flies – Drawn to food waste and garbage; fruit flies are common around uncleaned kitchen areas.
- Spiders – Typically feed on other insects, so they’re common where other pests are present.
- Silverfish – Attracted to paper, glue, and other starchy materials; can be found around file cabinets, storage rooms, or bookshelves.
- Termites – Can cause structural damage by feeding on wood, including furniture or building structures.
- Bed bugs – Sometimes hitchhike into offices on employees’ clothing or belongings, though they’re less common.
- Typical Office Pests: Mice, cockroaches, ants, and seasonal pests.
- Signs of Infestation: Common indicators of pest activity in the workplace.
Now this list might seem a lot to you, but it is the reality that your office has to face and investing in a pest control program should be on top of your list because cleaning alone isn’t really gonna make them go away. No matter how offices are tried to be shiny and spotless, without proper preventative maintenance, they will always find their way in.
Factors that Attract Pests
Several factors can attract pests to office spaces.
Most commonly, food crumbs and unsealed snacks left on desks, in kitchen areas, or in trash cans can create a food source for pests like ants, cockroaches, and rodents.
Poor sanitation, such as infrequent cleaning of communal areas, garbage bins, or pantry spaces, attract pests and allow them to create a space for infestation.
Cluttered storage areas create dark, undisturbed spots that appeal to pests like cockroaches, spiders, and rodents. Additionally, moisture from leaky pipes or poorly ventilated bathrooms can attract moisture-loving pests such as silverfish and termites.
Lastly, Cracks and gaps in walls, windows, or doors can also provide easy entry points. By understanding these factors, offices can proactively reduce pest attraction and maintain a cleaner, more hygienic workspace.
How to Prevent Pests in the Office
There are many ways to maintain a pest-free office environment.
It is important to perform regular and scheduled cleaning, such as emptying trash cans, vacuuming, and wiping surfaces, to ensure that workstations, kitchens, and break areas are free of food crumbs and spills.
Proper food storage is also essential—HR managers can encourage employees to use airtight containers and avoid leaving food on desks or counters to prevent ants and rodents.
Sealing entry points like cracks, gaps, or holes in walls, doors, and windows prevents pests from finding their way indoors.
Additionally, fixing leaks and eliminating moisture sources, such as leaky pipes, helps to prevent cockroaches and termites.
Keep storage spaces organized and reduce clutter, as piles of paper and cardboard can provide hiding spots for pests.
Dispose of waste properly by using tightly closed garbage bins and emptying them regularly to discourage flies and rodents.
When inspecting deliveries, check packages and office supplies for signs of pests, as they can sometimes hitchhike into the office.
Finally, regular pest control services are an essential preventive measure, helping manage and prevent infestations.
Implementing a Workplace Pest Control Plan
Not every leader in every workforce has the right knowledge and skills to implement an effective workplace pest control plan. That is why, instead of doing it by yourself, you can always call pest control professionals to do the work.
But for now, you can take a look at these tips we created to ensure a healthy workplace free from pest intruders.
To create a plan, you should begin by identifying areas where pests can take space, such as kitchens, bathrooms, and storage areas, where food, moisture, and clutter are often present.
To encourage everyone in the workplace to participate in the plan, you can assign specific responsibilities to staff, like ensuring food is properly stored and garbage is regularly emptied to maintain basic cleanliness.
Always allot time for regular inspection by having a designated team or professional pest control service to monitor for signs of pests and entry points, like cracks or gaps, that may require sealing.
By implementing these steps, you will be closer to having a more hygienic, pest-free workplace, which can positively affect your employees’ well-being.
How Abra Kadabra Can Help Maintain a Healthy Workspace
At Abra Kadabra, it’s our goal to find the safest way to protect your employees and clients while providing an effective outcome. Living and working with troublesome pests is not something you need to accept. These uninvited offenders cause costly property damage and an unhealthy environment for your customers and employees.
We provide services for single events or maintenance and prevention plans for year-round confidence because we know that the problem will not improve. We have the knowledge, expertise, and experience to get your pest issues under control so you can focus on the part of your business that energizes you.
