Three-quarters of workers have reported that their company has taken no action to address their noise issues or the actions have failed.
The research, commissioned by Plantronics, also found that there is a growing difficulty for office environments to keep noise distractions at bay and for employees to focus on work.
Today’s office environments are showing serious noise challenges for individuals and their colleagues, undermining productivity gains.
Office workers in the UK, Germany and France listed decreased productivity as a common effect of noise – and believe they would be a lot more productive in a less noisy environment (UK 54%; Germany 65%; France 66%).
An oversight of noise at work issues could potentially cost a UK organisation nearly £15,000 per year in lost productivity per senior manager employed.
Disruptive noise in an open office environment can manifest itself into stress and physical ailments, such as headaches and migraines – both were listed amongst chief complaints across all countries.
Only half of respondents still work in the office five days a week
The dynamics of the office workplace are constantly evolving; an average of only half of total respondents (UK 48%; Germany 51%; France 51%) reported they still worked in the office five days during an average work week.
As flexible working grows in popularity, office design has also radically changed, with open-plan office environments becoming the norm and fewer people working from a traditional fixed desk.
This new way of work can create serious acoustic difficulties without the correct soundscaping measures. As a result, office workers in Germany, the UK and France all listed noisy colleagues as the biggest noise complaint in their office environment.
Philip Vanhoutte
“Acoustics play a huge role in the contentment and productivity of a workforce,” said Philip Vanhoutte at Plantronics. “In today’s environment, it is extremely important for companies to understand how sound affects its bottom line and to take appropriate action to soundscape their workplace. We are passionate about ensuring workers have the right solutions necessary for a high-quality communication experience, no matter if work is being done in a traditional open-plan office, an airport, coffee shop or at home.”
For more information about Plantronics, visit their website.
Author: Megan Jones
Published On: 18th Mar 2015 - Last modified: 18th Dec 2018
Read more about - Archived Content, Poly
Co-workers conducting hands-free telephone conversations and incessant talking was actually instrumental in my resignation several weeks ago. I am (or was) a senior manager with a very large multi-national company but everyone worked in an “open environment”.
I believe the main economic driver is building flexibility. In a downturn the building can be more easily leased if left as an open canvas.
I would literally dread going to the office each day…