How Green Is Your Workplace?

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Survey shows Londoners believe "being green is key to a happy working life"

London office workers place more importance on being green at work than anywhere else in the UK, a survey has revealed. However, more than half still feel they would be happier and more positive in the workplace if their employers were more supportive of their environmental efforts.

A national survey commissioned as part of Avery Green Office Week has revealed that London businesses who take their environmental responsibilities seriously are far more likely to benefit from a productive, happy and motivated workforce.

Despite the clear link between being green and being happy and the importance Londoners place on green working practices, 67% of London office workers said they had previously found themselves in an awkward situation with their bosses for trying to implement better environmental practices at work. A further 71% said they would avoid suggesting greener working initiatives because they wouldn’t want to be seen as ‘nagging’, which could reflect badly on their career prospects.

A quarter of London workers, more than twice the national average, would go as far as stating they would look for another job if they felt their company’s environmental efforts were not being taken seriously enough. And, a staggering 67% of London’s office workers say they are now influenced on whether to apply for a job or not by a company's environmental credentials, meaning companies who don't take the environment seriously enough may be missing out on top working talent.

The current economic climate has seen some positive effects on Londoners recycling habits, with 36% saying they had seen and increase in environmental efforts within their workplace, which is a third higher than companies nationally. However, there’s still room for improvement, with Londoners twice as likely to consider themselves ‘green’ at home than they are in the workplace, citing needless printing and a lack of recycling as some of their biggest office environmental crimes.

Time for Change
With a third of our lives spent at work, Green Office Week aims to change all this. Bigger and better than ever before, Green Office Week 2012 features a unique Green League with points and prizes for the greenest office workers and a special Junk Modelling Challenge that will prove being green can be great fun too. The week will also be full of hints and tips to help you green your workplace, with daily themes to help guide you on some of the most important things you can implement practically.  To find out more and to get involved with Green Office Week 2012, simply register at greenofficeweek.eu.

May 10, 2012