Can a cold office really ruin your diet? Could dank conditions actually affect your health? Is it possible that workplace tensions over heating can lead to low morale, damage productivity and increased sickness absence?
Consultancy firms are paid millions every year by companies desperate to improve sickness figures, increase productivity and boost employee engagement. Typically, these consultants arrive at a factory or an office and spend weeks or months producing a report on their findings.
And what are their findings? While much is blamed on soft skills such as lack of communication from management, transparency in the business, and how employees see their role in the organization, very often there are tangible forces at play. From the cleanliness of the workplace and the workforce, to ergonomic office design and workstation assessments; at one time or another, almost any factor you can think of has received condemnation.
But the one thing that comes up time and again, yet is often ignored, is the temperature of the workplace. With winter coming, could portable heater hire really be the answer to your problems?
First, let’s look at the problem and why it is so regularly swept under the carpet. The temperature of the workforce is seen as a subjective thing. Anyone who has ever worked in an office will know that for every person who complains of the cold, there is a polar opposite who always insists on having the window open.
This understandably does lead to tension in the workplace. Not a huge tension but the kind that can niggle away over months and years. It’s the kind of tension that can exacerbate other stresses in the workplace leading to fractious relationships and health issues such as stress.
The fact is, however, that there is a clear solution to temperature subjectivity – the thermometer. There are many best practice guides and recommendations regarding office temperature and a simple thermometer will inform you as to whether your office is too hot or too cold. It’s increasingly likely that your office is actually too cold given the change in seasons, the increased cost of heating, and the modern design of many offices.
But why is portable heating the answer? Well, clearly you don’t need heating all year round. Investing in improvements to central heating or central air seems like an unjustifiable expense when you consider that for at least half the year it won’t even be required.
Portable heating hire is the answer for a number of reasons. First, you need to only hire heaters as and when you need them. You can also choose how many you need based on where the cold spots of your office are. Secondly, staff who often complain that they are too hot can simply move the heaters away from them and towards the colder staff.
In no way would we suggest that you ignore the cleanliness of the workplace, office design or workstation assessments but next time you are worrying over your sickness figures, think about putting the heating on.