An independent survey of 2,500 employees in buildings with more than 500 employees sponsored by Honeywell in Germany, India, the UK, the U.S.A., and the Middle East, finds a majority want employers to implement better indoor air quality (IAQ) and reduce their building's carbon footprints.
Ninety-four per cent of the sample for the Healthy Buildings Survey agreed that the quality of the air they breathe is having a direct impact on their health and wellbeing.
The survey helps shed light on the impact of buildings on both occupant well-being and the environment.
Nearly one quarter (24%) of surveyed U.K. office workers are extremely or very worried about their office’s indoor air quality (IAQ), a 14% increase (21%) from last year's Healthy Buildings survey.
Additionally, eight out of every 10 respondents say their expectations for improved IAQ have increased in the past three years.
Even more, 16% of respondents don’t know how often, if at all, their employer or office building manager monitors their office building's current IAQ, compared with 7% of global respondents.
This leaves room for employers to improve both workplace IAQ and communication of IAQ metrics to their employees.
Nearly half (49%) of respondents want their employer to prioritise both better indoor air quality (IAQ) in their building as well as reducing their building’s carbon footprint.
The findings suggest that office employees are becoming increasingly aware of their work environment and its effect on their overall well-being and productivity, and the environmental impact of the building itself.
The Honeywell Survey was conducted by Wakefield Research (www.wakefieldresearch.com) among 2,500 workers in buildings of 500-plus workers across five markets - Germany, India, the Middle East, the United Kingdom and the United States - between January 12 and January 22, 2023, using an email invitation and an online form. The data has been weighted. Results of any sample are subject to sampling variation. The magnitude of the variation is measurable and is affected by the number of interviews and the level of the percentages expressing the results. For the interviews conducted in this particular study, the chances are 95 in 100 that a survey result does not vary, plus or minus, by more than 4.4 percentage points from the result that would be obtained in each market if interviews had been conducted with all persons in the universe represented by the sample.
Visit 2023 Healthy Building Occupant Survey Report to download the full report (registration required).
A majority of U.K. respondents were willing to give up at least one job perk or benefit (80%), with the most notable items being:
● Building amenities, like lounges or fitness centre (36%)
● Food perks for employees, like coffee, tea, or snacks (33%)
● Less temperature control like running the heat or using AC less (30%)
● State-of-the-art technology for my day-to-day job (21%)
● Part of my salary or bonus (14%)
Concerns raised by participants in the survey about the environmental impact of their workplace may be buoyed by the emphasis organisations are now placing on sustainability - a trend confirmed by the most recent Honeywell Environmental Sustainability Index quarterly survey of business leaders directly involved in their organisation’s environmental sustainability initiatives, which measuring key responses in the global effort to mitigate the impact of climate change and other sustainability initiatives.
Seventy-one percent of organisations surveyed in the second release of the environmental sustainability survey ranked sustainability as one of their top five priorities (highest percentage), with 63% of surveyed organisations indicating energy evolution and efficiency were top priorities.
Survey Methodology
The Honeywell Survey was conducted by Wakefield Research (www.wakefieldresearch.com) among 2,500 workers in buildings of 500-plus workers across five markets – Germany, India, the Middle East, the United Kingdom and the United States – between January 12 and January 22, 2023, using an email invitation and an online form.
The data has been weighted.
Results of any sample are subject to sampling variation.
The magnitude of the variation is measurable and is affected by the number of interviews and the level of the percentages expressing the results.
For the interviews conducted in this particular study, the chances are 95 in 100 that a survey result does not vary, plus or minus, by more than 4.4 percentage points from the result that would be obtained in each market if interviews had been conducted with all persons in the universe represented by the sample.
Visit 2023 Healthy Building Occupant Survey Report to download the full report (registration required).
