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Businesses need to increase workplace sustainability to entice staff back, according to Workspaces CEO.
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Turn your office green 'or workers will stay at home’
15 December 2022
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Businesses that want to entice employees back to the office should make it more sustainable, says Workspaces CEO.
More indoor plants, power-saving technology and even an environment taskforce were ways a business could lift its green game, Jenny Folley said.
“The average person spends 90,000 hours at work over a lifetime, so making offices sustainable should be a priority for all companies,” she said.
“As staff return to the office post-COVID, they are demanding that companies take action to ensure their workplaces are eco-friendly.”
“In the current environment of labour shortages and the desire to work from home, staff are warning businesses that if they don’t improve their approach to sustainability they won’t return to the office and they will look for a job elsewhere.”
Ms Folley said Workspaces was about to launch a model powered by renewable energy.
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“Our business has been implementing sustainable operating practices for many years, in fact we will soon be rolling out a new private office and coworking model that is powered by renewable energy and supports 100 per cent recycling of all waste and used materials,” she said.
“All offices should be making a commitment to going green, there are so many ways companies can make a difference, many of which are so easy to roll out and implement that everyone can jump on board immediately.”
Some ways offices can be more environmentally friendly according to Ms Folley:
- Literally going green
“Bringing plant life into the office is one of the easiest things you can do, and the benefits are boundless,” she said.
“Having bits of greenery in the office space has been linked to workers being more productive, less stressed and healthier.”
“Indoor plants also improve air quality and instantly add beauty to an office that can otherwise lack personality.”
- Office task force for environmentalism
“Set up a sustainability team at work in which the team’s goal is to raise awareness and set up achievable goals and actions for all workers to participate,” said Ms Folley.
“The team could create monthly green challenges like keeping tabs on the numbers of reusable coffee cups being brought into the office everyday.”
- Power saving electronics
“Technology has come a long way and many office machines are now manufactured using recycled elements, they also use significantly less power when operational and go into sleep mode when they are not in use,” she said.
“Where possible, remove old energy guzzling machines and replace them with more efficient models, turn machines off when they are not in use, and if you are able to turn your computer off instead of letting it go into sleep mode.”
“Ensure your lights are power saving and convert lights to sensor lights to ensure power is minimised.”
- The 3Rs: Reduce, reuse and recycle
“Make sure offices are equipped with products that make it convenient and accessible for people to reduce, reuse and recycle,” said Ms Folley.
Examples included reducing paper wastage by encouraging clients to use e-documents, providing cutlery in the office kitchen to be washed and reused, and recycling items non-paper items such as printer cartridges and toners, batteries, and old mobile phones.
- Put a stop to food wastage
“Food waste occurs in the office in a variety of ways,” she said.
“For example, with the greatest of intentions, you bring a salad for lunch, but then there’s a meeting in which food is ordered.”
- Eco-friendly cleaning products
“Offices need to be cleaned regularly, using environmentally friendly cleaning products is just another simple change to make, but can make a difference,” said Ms Folley.
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