Businesses may well be overpaying for their utilities as research reveals that employees are far more likely to waste energy at work than at home.
A survey by electricity supplier Opus Energy found that over a third of employees are less likely to conserve energy at work, with male workers exposed as being particularly wasteful.
The research confirmed that, although many people consciously take energy-saving measures such as switching off lights and not overfilling the kettle while at home, many do not bother to do these things in the workplace.
For example, while three-quarters of workers will unplug their phone charger when they have finished using it at home, just 30% will do this in the workplace, while more than two-thirds of workers are more likely to overfill the kettle at work.
In fact, one in five respondents said that they are not taking any steps whatsoever to be more environmentally friendly at work.
Louise Boland, director at Opus Energy in charge of renewable energy sourcing, commented:
“It could be the case that employees feel less pressure to be green at work because they are not directly accountable for the energy bills each month.
“Companies that wish to reduce their carbon emissions and cut costs should encourage their workforce to ensure they take basic steps towards saving energy.”
Opus said that simple steps such as switching off PCs overnight and using double sided photocopies can help to lower a business’ carbon footprint and result in bottom-line savings.
© Crimson Business Ltd. 2008