72% of Office Workers Worldwide Worry about Air Quality in Their Buildings, Says Survey

The findings show that surveyed employees in all regions worry about the impact of poor air quality on their well-being and want more information from their employers. About two-thirds (62%) of those surveyed receive updates about IAQ only occasionally – or never – and just 15% receive real-time updates. More than six in 10 (62%) say they’re ready to leave their job if their employer doesn’t take steps to create a healthier indoor environment.

The report provides comparisons across markets and facility types, including office buildings, hospitals, airports, schools and hotels. Highlights include:

• An overwhelming majority (89%) of those surveyed agree that the quality of air they breathe has a direct impact on their health and well-being. Nearly all (98%) believe safe IAQ provides at least one health benefit: better overall physical health (62%); fewer allergies, less sneezing and coughing (60%); less exposure to airborne contaminants (57%); better overall mental health (53%); and improved productivity and problem-solving (43%).
• Yet few respondents across any of the markets get regular updates on their building’s air quality. While almost a third (29%) of surveyed C-level executives receive frequent updates, only 13% of non-C-level workers are actively informed. Nearly two-thirds (64%) of lower-level workers receive updates rarely, never or only sometimes at best.
• Nearly all (90%) of surveyed workers consider it at least somewhat important to be kept informed of their building’s air quality. This includes 65% who consider it very or extremely important.
• About two in five respondents (41%) can accurately identify all the factors that contribute to indoor air quality. More than a third (36%) do not know that CO₂ level factors into IAQ, and 41% are unaware that humidity plays a part.

“These findings suggest that workers in every region are aware that indoor air quality can affect their
well-being and expect employers to take action – both to improve IAQ and keep them better informed,” said Doug Wright, president and CEO, Honeywell Building Technologies. “In a competitive labor market, demonstrating an effort to create a healthier work environment can be an advantage in attracting and retaining employees. Every dollar invested in upgrading workplace air quality, monitoring IAQ data and communicating it to employees is a dollar strategically spent.”

Honeywell’s Healthy Buildings solutions integrate air quality, safety and security technologies with advanced analytics to help building owners improve the health of their buildings, operate more cleanly, comply with new guidelines, and help reassure occupants. Honeywell’s advanced IAQ portfolio can help improve occupant well-being, meet energy efficiency goals, and importantly, change the way occupants experience a building.

To read the full report, “Workplace Air Quality: A Global Concern Emerges,” please click here.

Methodology

The Honeywell Survey was conducted by Wakefield Research among 3,000 office workers in buildings of 500-plus workers in six markets – ASEAN, Germany, India, the Middle East, the United Kingdom and the United States – between December 17, 2021, and January 11, 2022, using an email invitation and an online form.

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 if interviews had been conducted with all persons in the universe represented by the sample.