HR Grapevine - What annoys staff most at work?

An article written by Sophie Parrott at HR Grapevine regarding Productivity and What annoys staff most at work?

New research by Yell has found that the ‘wrong’ office temperature tops the list as the biggest workplace annoyance – and costs UK workers 16 minutes in lost productivity per day.

23% of workers revealed being cold at work as the biggest pet peeve, with chilly workplace environments affecting more women (28%) than men (18%).

The study ranked poor internet connection as the second biggest office irritation with one in five citing this as immensely frustrating. Unclean working environments aggravated 18% of UK workers and was the third highest gripe. Mark Clisby, Chief Marketing Officer of Yell commented:

“While it can be difficult to get the right balance at work, it’s important that harmony is achieved to ensure your team is productive."

"Remind colleagues to consider each other’s needs – for example, before reaching for the aircon, check how the temperature feels for the rest of the team, and perhaps remove a jumper instead of turning the temperature down a few degrees.

“Also, business owners should encourage employees to step outside for lunch, rather than eating at their desks – it’s important to take a break from work, and this then avoids any debate over any smelly food”.

But, it seems that productivity doesn’t solely plummet as a result of office temperatures. There are many other office irritations that transcend into unproductive working. For example, noisy colleagues result in 17 minutes of lost time per worker per day, with Millennials being the most vulnerable age group to interruption. With this demographic saying that they're interrupted three times an hour.

Additionally, smelly foods can cost workers seven minutes in lost productivity per day. So, tuna or egg sandwich lovers should be mindful when tucking into lunch at their desk.

And it seems that all of these bugbears are costing both employers and their employees in productivity. Poor internet connection wastes an average of 20 minutes per day, with faulty electrical equipment costing 19 minutes of lost productivity. Hot workspaces also accounted for 19 minutes of unproductivity while cold workplaces accounted for 16 minutes.

Read on to find out what the top ten workplace annoyances are:

  1. Workplace being too cold.

  2. Poor internet connection.

  3. An unclean workspace.

  4. Workplace being too hot.

  5. Dirty crockery/cutlery left in the kitchen sink.

  6. Colleagues talking too loudly.

  7. A cluttered workspace.

  8. A colleague eating smelly food.

  9. Faulty electronic equipment.

  10. Colleagues having untidy workspaces.

HR Grapevine - What annoys staff most at work?