Itching to get your hair and nails done during lockdown? Well, now you can visit your stylist — but make sure to book an appointment and bring your mask.
Resource details:
Publication title: Directions: protocols for the personal care services
Author(s): Department of small business development
Publication date: 19 June 2020
What the directives are about:
The directives outline the conditions under which personal care businesses — both formal and informal — can reopen during South Africa’s lockdown level 3. Such businesses include grooming services such as hairdressers and barbers, spas offering nail and facial treatments and businesses offering services such as body massages, tattooing and piercing. The document explains which measures such businesses need to take to create an environment that mitigates the spread of COVID-19.
Key take-aways from the directives:
- Basic protective principles must be followed. These include regular handwashing, the frequent cleaning and disinfection of surfaces, social distancing between customers and staff, wearing cloth masks and additional protective masks when a service requires close facial contact.
- A hand sanitiser or a handwashing station should be available to customers before they enter the salon. Employees should wash their hands before and after serving a customer.
- Contactless payment should be encouraged. Staff and customers should wash their hands after handling cash.
- Fresh, clean towels should be used for each customer.
- Tools must be washed or sanitised after each use. Product bottles should be wiped down with a 70% alcohol solution after serving each customer. Basins should be cleaned after each use and deep cleaned at the end of every business day. No scalp, neck, shoulder and arm massages at basins at hairdressers are allowed.
- Stylists must wear cloth masks and visors/face shields. Visors and aprons should be cleaned after serving each customer. Should gloves be required for a treatment, these should be changed after each customer too.
- Time restrictions should be set for treatments to limit unnecessary interaction.
- Customers should try to pre-book their appointments to avoid queuing.
- Customers must maintain a distance of 1.5 metre from staff and other clients while queuing or receiving their treatment. It is the responsibility of the salon to clearly mark the 1.5 metre distances.
- It is the salon’s responsibility to explain the protocols to employees and clients. Customers must receive this information before they are treated. Where possible, the salon should put up a notice on the COVID-19 protocol for clients.
- Should a salon employee test positive for COVID-19, it is their responsibility to inform their employer.
- The salon should discourage employees older than 60 or with comorbidities from working.
- Employees and customers with flu-like symptoms should not be allowed to enter the salon.
- It is the salon’s responsibility to keep a register of people entering the premises each day.
- Salons are prohibited from offering customers food and drink.
- Tattoo or piercing customers must sign an indemnity form acknowledging and accepting the risk of undergoing a close contact procedure during the coronavirus pandemic.
You can find and download the directives here.
[Please note: Information on the new coronavirus is rapidly changing. Please refer to the department of small business development website for the latest information. Visit www.sacoronavirus.co.za for updates on South Africa’s coronavirus response.]
