The pandemic has made UK workers more mindful about their health and, by extension, the cleanliness of office spaces.
This is according to a new report from smart building designer Infogrid, based on a poll of 2,000 UK employees, which states that the vast majority (73 percent) claim regular cleaning has the greatest impact on how safe they feel returning to the office.
Regular cleaning was considered more important than both the number of people they share their office with and improved air quality.
Not everyone believes they will make an imminent return to the office. Of those that do expect to return, less than half (48 percent) believe this will happen before July.
Of the half of respondents that are not worried about returning to the office, most said they trust their employer to make the environment safe. The vaccine rollout has also contributed greatly to a heightened sense of security.
For many workers, the healthiness of their workplace affects their mental (54 percent) and physical (56 percent) wellbeing. Some would appreciate more data on how safe their workspace is, such as data on air quality and cleaning information.
“Employees have reservations about returning to the workplace,” said William Cowell de Gruchy, CEO at Infogrid. “Organizations need to take action now to prepare the workplace. Not only to make their employees feel safe but to safeguard their ongoing welfare. Employees are now more conscious than ever of how their workplace impacts their wellbeing.”
