Our Response to COVID-19

Ensuring the health and safety of our employees and customers is our top priority during this challenging time.  To reduce the transmission of COVID-19 on Highwater Clays' premises, we have taken the following actions:

 

  1. What we have been doing for employees

    • Made hand-sanitizers and hand-wipes accessible in work areas.
    • Posted signs for instructions on proper hand-washing and other health and safety practices to reduce transmission of coronaviruses.
    • Distributed personal protective gear to employees, such as masks and gloves. Required employees to wear masks where not possible to maintain a 6-feet distance on our premises. 
    • Installed workplace partitions where employees need to work in close proximity with each other and/or customers. 
    • Regularly administered temperature checks for employees. 
    • Enhanced cleaning of high-contact surfaces, including door handles and staircase handrails. 
    • Given up to two weeks of paid time off in addition to other paid time-off options. 

  2. What we have been doing for customers

    • Enhanced cleaning of our premises and made curbside pickups available at our physical locations.
    • Made it easier for customers to choose curbside pickups for their online orders. The "Local Pickup" option has always been a main feature of our new website since it went live in February of 2020, but our web-host (Shopify) has made it an integral part of the check-out process.
    • Provided contact-free pickups and freight shipments. Customers can place orders online or over the phone, and our employees help them pay over the phone securely using a new point-of-sale system.  Pickups are virtually contact-free because our employees help customers load their purchases while they wait in their vehicles.
    • When allowed to open our physical locations for in-store shopping, we have posted signs at our front door requiring customers to wear masks and follow other health and safety measures.
    • Placed hand-sanitizers for customers on the checkout counter. Installed large, easy-to-read signs above the aisles in our store to improve foot-traffic flow and help customers maintain safe distances from each other. 
    • We have also placed tapes on the floor 6-feet apart to help them maintain good social distancing while waiting in line.
    • Installed a large, clear partition at the checkout counter to protect both customers and store clerks during face-to-face transactions.
    • Made over a dozen COVID-19-related updates on our website and social media platform.  In these updates, we keep our customers stay connected and up-to-date on changes in our services that are impacted by federal, state, and county ordinances.