4 Ways to Protect and Engage Bed Bug Technicians During COVID-19

 

1. Gear Up. Pest control companies already require bed bug technicians to wear personal protective equipment (PPE), such as long-sleeves, gloves, Tyvek coveralls, shoe covers and respirators, when required by product labels.

 

To allay employee (and consumer) fears during COVID-19, many companies also require technicians to wear additional gear, such as face masks and/or face shields.

 

For example, Plunkett’s Pest Control in Fridley, Minn., now adheres to all PPE requirements set forth by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, in addition to those required by product labels. The company will not perform bed bug work in units under quarantine. 

2. Disinfect. ABC Home & Commercial Services in Austin, Texas, may perform disinfection service before bed bug treatment to protect employees, said Alan Brown, an entomologist who manages the company’s bed bug and fumigation department. 

 

“In some cases, we may be working in shelters and places that may be housing COVID-positive patients, so we have to be very mindful of that,” he said. As such, disinfectant is applied to areas where treatment is scheduled to take place, killing the virus before bed bug technicians are potentially exposed.

 

Likewise, if customers are high-risk for COVID-19 and are concerned about catching the virus from technicians, the company will perform a disinfection service after performing bed bug treatment and before the customer returns to the premises.

 

3. Make it Fun. A former high school teacher and coach, Tom Sieminski said his bed bug technicians do their best work when a little friendly competition is part of the inspection and treatment process. “I make it like a game,” says the owner of Team Pest Control in Sayville, N.Y.

 

The team assembles at the jobsite at 8 a.m. Each team member is assigned to a different room or area, and Sieminski poses challenges such as, “Who’s the first guy to find a bug?” At 10 a.m., the team takes a break and it’s time to see who did the best work, which is determined by Sieminski checking off boxes on his quality control checklist.

 

The work remains grueling. Employees wear full PPE and it’s hot. They’re lifting mattresses, installing encasements, moving furniture, and carrying heavy garbage bags full of clothes. Even so, Sieminski has found “gamification” keeps employees from focusing on the negative. “I made it challenging and I made it somewhat competitive and my guys enjoy it,” he said.

 

4. Reconsider Your Protocol. Plunkett’s Pest Control recently shifted its bed bug protocol from heat to conventional chemical treatment. That change made it easier on employees in a few ways. First, they’re no longer lugging around heavy heating units, fans and cords, often up flights of stairs. “Everything on a heat rig is heavy,” said Jeremiah Riopel, the company’s multi-housing sales and marketing director. Their risk of injury also is reduced. “Knees and backs are expensive,” he pointed out.

 

Driver safety improved because employees aren’t hauling heavy heat trailers. “Towing a 7,000-pound trailer is dangerous even if you’re the safest guy on the planet,” said Riopel.

 

Finally, it’s easier for technicians to schedule conventional bed bug treatments. “They have much more say in when these jobs get done,” said Riopel.

 

His technicians, who work on production, can now earn more money because they have the flexibility to schedule bed bug jobs and seasonal work into their existing routes. By comparison, scheduling heat treatment is less flexible and “it eats up a big portion or your day,” said Riopel.