Ask someone what they think of their colleague’s messy desk
and you can be assured you’ll get a strong response. My guess is half of the people you ask will
be “appalled” by how messy a colleagues’ office is and likely chalk it up to
laziness. I suppose if you classify
travelling to much and running from meeting to meeting being lazy then the
somewhat neatly stacked piles of files on my desk could be construed as being
too lazy to file...
The truth is being neat and tidy is only half the
battle. Certainly, keeping a tidy desk
will improve (or supposed to improve)
your mindset and motivation to work, but more importantly, it will help prevent
the buildup of dust, dirt, food stains, fingerprints and most significantly
germs! In fact, some studies that have
been conducted have shown that our workplace desk can be 400 times dirtier than
the average toilet seat! While we may
think the keyboard or mouse would be the dirtiest as we are forever touching
them...our phone is actually the dirtiest object in our office.
battle. Certainly, keeping a tidy desk
will improve (or supposed to improve)
your mindset and motivation to work, but more importantly, it will help prevent
the buildup of dust, dirt, food stains, fingerprints and most significantly
germs! In fact, some studies that have
been conducted have shown that our workplace desk can be 400 times dirtier than
the average toilet seat! While we may
think the keyboard or mouse would be the dirtiest as we are forever touching
them...our phone is actually the dirtiest object in our office.
It’s no wonder that our desk spaces are dirtier than
ever. One of the largest factors in
creating an unhygienic workplace is that more people are working through their
lunches and eating at their desks. In
fact, our desk is 100 times less hygienic than your kitchen table! For some it may seem odd, but the truth is
that like us, bacteria need food. Crumbs
from your lunch provide the much needed food to allow bacteria to thrive and
proliferate.
ever. One of the largest factors in
creating an unhygienic workplace is that more people are working through their
lunches and eating at their desks. In
fact, our desk is 100 times less hygienic than your kitchen table! For some it may seem odd, but the truth is
that like us, bacteria need food. Crumbs
from your lunch provide the much needed food to allow bacteria to thrive and
proliferate.
In Canada, workers took an average of 9.3 sick days in
2011. These absences cost the economy
about $16.6 billion based on salary cost for the days lost,
and that tally did not include the cost for replacement workers. In the United States, poor health costs the
economy $576 billion a year. Of that amount, 39%, or $227 billion is from “lost
productivity” from employee
absenteeism due to illness, or from what researchers called “presenteeism,”
which is when employees report to work but illness keeps them from performing
at their best.
2011. These absences cost the economy
about $16.6 billion based on salary cost for the days lost,
and that tally did not include the cost for replacement workers. In the United States, poor health costs the
economy $576 billion a year. Of that amount, 39%, or $227 billion is from “lost
productivity” from employee
absenteeism due to illness, or from what researchers called “presenteeism,”
which is when employees report to work but illness keeps them from performing
at their best.
Many of these statistics are highlighted in the ISSA’s
Infographic “How
clean is your work space”. I think
the most surprising to me is that only 3% of offices sufficiently clean their
equipment...I suppose it could be due to the fact that if the space is messy it
makes it difficult to clean, but the truth is cleaning improves our
health. In fact cleaning is an
investment in both our own and our employee’s health. While we do not want to be treated like children
and make them do chores such as cleaning their room, it may be prudent to have
“office cleaning time” each week to ensure that housekeeping staff that clean
our office spaces can in fact clean the spaces....
Infographic “How
clean is your work space”. I think
the most surprising to me is that only 3% of offices sufficiently clean their
equipment...I suppose it could be due to the fact that if the space is messy it
makes it difficult to clean, but the truth is cleaning improves our
health. In fact cleaning is an
investment in both our own and our employee’s health. While we do not want to be treated like children
and make them do chores such as cleaning their room, it may be prudent to have
“office cleaning time” each week to ensure that housekeeping staff that clean
our office spaces can in fact clean the spaces....
I wonder if next fall when flu season comes around whether I
will be healthier if I keep my desk clean - my thought is that will only be the
case if I stop treating it like my kitchen table!
will be healthier if I keep my desk clean - my thought is that will only be the
case if I stop treating it like my kitchen table!
Bugging Off!
Nicole
