Study Finds Rising Expectations for Workplace Air Quality

In the 2023 Building Occupant Survey Report recently released by Honeywell International Inc., a building technologies company, a majority of employees surveyed (93%) said they have higher expectations for indoor air quality (IAQ) in their workplace now than they did three years ago.

The report, which surveyed 2,500 office workers who work in buildings with 500-plus employees in Germany, India, the Middle East, the United Kingdom, and the United States, also found that 43% of the respondents feel either extremely or very concerned about their workplace’s IAQ. India reported the most concern (64%), with the U.K. expressing the least (24%).

A significant majority of those surveyed (97%) said they would take some form of action if their employer didn’t put measures in place to improve the indoor environment. One in five respondents (21%) said they would go as far as to look for another job if their employer failed to maintain a healthy indoor environment.

The report also revealed perceptions regarding the environmental impact of their workplace. Two-thirds of the workers surveyed (67%) feel that it’s very to extremely important that their employer or facility manager monitor the building’s carbon emissions, while even more (73%) said management should be taking active steps to reduce its carbon footprint.

In fact, 26% of the respondents said they would give up part of their salary or bonus if it meant those funds would be used to reduce the environmental impact of their building.