ECJ EUROPEAN Cleaning Journal

Australian offices are breeding grounds for germs, with poor workplace hygiene costing businesses up to 537 million euros in lost wages each year, new research suggests.

A survey conducted by Initial Hygiene found the hygiene habits of Australian workers are low, leading to one in six workers falling ill from poor office cleanliness standards.

It found that these workers were taking an average 4.8 sick days each year, leading to a loss in productivity and wages for employers.

Initial Hygiene marketing manager Natalie Howard said the survey showed 40 per cent of office workers were concerned they might fall ill due to poor office hygiene, while 50 per cent said office hygiene concerns affected their productivity.

Howard said three out of four office workers believe poor office hygiene indicates their employer "doesn't care about them".

"Over half (55 per cent) of Aussie office workers are not happy with their office washroom and criticised their employer for ‘washing their hands' of office hygiene. This is a damning statistic, and shows Australian businesses are not making it the priority it needs to be," she said.