Something for the weekend: Employees have even more reason to be reluctant to return to office-based working, as new research reveals that office door handles harbour 30-times more bacteria than the average toilet seat.
Office furniture supply firm Furniture At Work has revealed that door handles are the dirtiest areas of the office.
In order to find out where employees are picking up the most germs, and where sickness is most likely to spread, the firm carried out an experiment with a Hygiena ATP Monitoring System, which is used throughout many hospital and healthcare settings. This determines the hygienic status of surfaces and liquid samples by collecting a relative light unit (RLU) reading. Higher readings mean more bacteria is living on a surface, whereas a clean and sterilised surface should have a reading of 0.
After testing several places around the office by swabbing 10cm² areas, door handles had the highest reading, most likely due to being used by different people multiple times a day.
The second highest reading was for the office sink, which had 23-times more bacteria than a toilet seat, followed by other kitchen staples: the microwave door and the kettle.
Some businesses will employ cleaning firms to clean daily, but these high readings suggested that cleaning throughout the day might be worth considering.
The top 10 office bacteria hotspots with their RLU measurements were:
- Door handle – 648
- Sink – 487
- Microwave door – 408
- Mobile phone – 345
- Kettle – 288
- Toilet tap – 239
- Desk chair – 222
- Kitchen fridge – 195
- Desk phone – 193
- Keyboard – 176
A Furniture at Work spokesperson said: “Keeping the office clean is something that has always been a concern but has become even more important since the Covid-19 pandemic.
“With so many sickness days still being taken each year, it’s beneficial for business owners to address any potential concerns about office cleanliness to ensure any risk of illness isn’t easily spread and all employees feel comfortable and safe within the office environment.”
Here at Employee Benefits, we will be scrubbing our hands – and our doorhandles – after this news!