For thousands of years, achieving a comfortable room temperature in hot climates was a constant struggle. People tried all sorts of tricks, from hanging wet mats outside their windows to having slaves fan air over a pile of snow through a hole in the ceiling.
Fast-forward to 2016 and a refreshing glacial breeze can be yours at the flick of a thermostat.
And yet, the majority of workers still aren’t content. A 2015 survey of 129 office workers in the US found that 42% of people think their building is too warm, while 56% think it’s too cold. Now that we can have our offices whatever temperature we like, we just can’t agree what temperature that is.
It’s a dilemma Ben Morse, a freelance office worker in London, knows only too well. “In my current office there’s a daily debate about the temperature. The air con is on and off three or four times a day.”
Ai Ling Chang, a project manager based in Singapore, has encountered some extraordinary strategies over the years. “In one office, my friend had a chair with arm rests, she would pad it all round with cushions to keep warm. In another I had a colleague who’d get so hot, sometimes he’d run into a restroom cubicle and take off all his clothes. He’d just stand there, trying to cool down.”
Failing to keep workers comfortable isn’t simply mean – it has serious financial implications too. In all, around 2% of office hours in the UK are wasted by battles for climate control, costing the economy more than £13 billion each year. In Australia, stifling heat cools productivity to the tune of US$6.2 billion.
Getting the temperature right can boost job satisfaction, productivity and collaboration. Getting it wrong can make workers slow, fat, or even sick…
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http://www.bbc.com/capital/story/20160617-the-never-ending-battle-over-the-best-office-temperature