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Follow on Google News | Sick and Tired of Work? (Or is your workplace making you sick?)Much of the blame for stress in the workplace, especially in the heavily service-orientated SE area, can be laid squarely at the door of modern working practices. i.e. human beings cooped-up like battery hens in so-called `open-plan' work-stations
By: Alan Whitehead - Whitehead Francis Associates The university looked at all of the research that had ever been done on the subject since the trend first started in the United States in the 1930s. What they discovered was shocking indeed! Over 90% of the results were negative! (In other words, the majority were against working in such an environment because not only did office workers suffer low productivity, it even affected their overall health!) And if this situation isn't scary enough, on top of these findings, there's also the often misnamed, and much misunderstood `Sick Building Syndrome' with sufferers experiencing, in extreme cases, physical symptoms such as: * Headache * Eye, nose, and throat irritation * Dry cough * Dry, itchy skin, rashes * Dizziness and nausea * Sensitivity to odours Both conditions, either separately or together, have resulted in the unprecedented escalation in the number of `sickies' being thrown every day resulting in billions of pounds worth of lost productivity. Can anything be done about it? According to Alan Whitehead – principal at office refurbishment & fit out consultants Whitehead Francis Associates - the good news is, yes! But, as Whitehead bluntly puts it, “Rather than just accepting this situation as a natural result of `progress' there is a lot that can be done to alleviate, or even eradicate, these problems. A first step, if the latter condition is suspected, should be to report the situation to your landlord, office manager, or whoever is responsible for the building and ask them to have an inspection carried out. If they are unwilling to cooperate then you may have to get local authorities such as an environmental health agency involved. (Or if you'd prefer, an outsourced expert could handle this delicately on your behalf.)” Alan explains further: “After a thorough environmental health inspection has been carried out on a building to determine possible causes for the occupants’ health complaints, there are many measures that can be taken to rectify the situation. A combination of some of the factors mentioned above will usually be involved and all will have to be tackled. Measures taken may include an overhaul or replacement of the ventilation system, structural repairs to prevent leaks and damp, a review of chemicals used in the building, a review of cleaning practices and professional mould removal.” Commenting on the modern trend for open-plan working and it’s effect on the people who have to work in such conditions, Whitehead explains: “Because we humans all have different characteristics it’s difficult to generalise too much but clearly if a workplace has been designed poorly where too many bodies are crammed into too small a space then problems are bound to arise. People will become more easily stressed which in turn will give rise to more workplace conflicts. There is also the delicate matter of privacy and our need to be able concentrate fully on the task in hand. The above mentioned Australian University research was also able to clearly demonstrate that productivity dropped dramatically in poorly designed open-plan work spaces. Whitehead cites the following examples: “Say you are sitting at your work station in a mainly open plan office and you hear a door bang at the other end of your floor, your sub-conscious brain will register it momentarily but you will be able to carry on with what you were working on uninterrupted. However, if you hear an unanswered `phone ringing on the next desk and you either wait for it stop or get up to answer it yourself your brain will need at least 15-20 minutes to recover to it’s previous levels of concentration to enable you to get back to where you were in the task you were working on. Or, as is so often the case during the course of your working day, your line manager or a colleague sits down beside you and goes through the details of the next project you’re to work on, then you’ll need up to an hour to recover your concentration before being able to return to your original task!” Is it any wonder then that a lot of open plan workers feel tired, stressed and worn out at the end of each working day wondering where the time went and also irritated that they were unable to finish that important project within the allotted time.” Whitehead concludes by saying: “The important thing is to take action to have a suspected `sick building' investigated as soon as possible as it is likely that the problems will only get worse if not addressed. So, don't put your business - or the well being of your staff - at risk by ignoring the symptoms. Do get early expert help – the earlier the better." For Effective Workplace Solutions: Call free on 0800 458 6578 Or email info@whiteheadfrancis.co.uk http://www.whiteheadfrancis.co.uk # # # ABOUT WHITEHEAD FRANCIS ASSOCIATES - SPECIALIST CONSULTANTS FOR OFFICE FIT OUT & REFURBISHMENT Whitehead Francis Associates are independent consultants specialising in planning, implementing and managing ALL aspects of a commercial interior fit out, refurbishment or business relocation. With more than 35 years experience in the industry (with many of these spent working at the `sharp end' as contractors themselves) including projects for many `blue chip’ organizations such as BT, esure, Heineken, Marks & Spencer, Schal, Sothebys, as well as a host of lesser known names, WFA’s involvement in any project - either from start to finish or at any point in between - allows their clients the complete freedom to get on with what they do best — making profits for their own business! Tel: 01737 351842 Mob: 07970 753125 Kincaid House, Warren Road, Banstead, Surrey, SM7 1LA Email: info@whiteheadfrancis.co.uk Web: http://www.whiteheadfrancis.co.uk End
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