There’s no doubt the events of recent years have transformed the ways we live and work. Hybrid working appears to be here to stay, while other workplace changes, including an emphasis on sustainability and new concerns about energy efficiency, have created new challenges for facility managers.
One of the most enduring legacies of the pandemic has been higher levels of awareness about our health at work—including more attention to indoor air quality. Lockdowns revealed to everyone just how much time we spend inside (roughly 90% of our lives), while concern about viral transmission risk has inevitably grown.
As a result, new regulations and ESG reporting frameworks in many countries are highlighting indoor air quality in building design and management. And together with the cost benefits of enhanced productivity due to better building health, that makes improving air quality in the workplace an urgent priority for facility managers.
To understand what role indoor air quality plays in our new world of work, Infogrid took a deep dive into the perspectives and concerns of hybrid workers. We commissioned new research surveying 4,000 workers in the US and the UK who spend at least one day a week in the workplace, to assess their perspectives on what makes a healthy, productive, and sustainable work environment.
What did we find out? Our research suggests that employees are both knowledgeable and concerned about the impact of poor air quality in the workplace—and they think more should be done to improve it. Employers and facility managers must make it a top priority.
With health now a key workplace concern, as well as a critical component of a holistic ESG strategy, pressure is coming from more than just governments for businesses to improve workplace conditions. Hybrid working employees too want their employers and building managers to act on air quality—and fast.