Economic benefits of the effects of office environment on perceived work efficiency and presenteeism

Abstract

As hubs of intellectual activity, offices are expected to promote work efficiency and support worker health. Many studies have analyzed the relationship of the office environment with work efficiency and the health of workers. However, few studies have compared the effects of various elements of the office environment on these outcomes and their economic benefits. To address this limitation, this study investigated the impact of various environmental elements on both work efficiency and health, and analyzed the economic benefits of optimizing these elements in office spaces. The impacts of each element of the office environment on work efficiency and worker health were analyzed for 1644 workers in 29 office buildings in Tokyo, Japan. Economic benefits were estimated by comparing perceived work efficiency to an ideal office and presenteeism to the absence of health-related barriers. The results showed that the office interior and furnishings provided the largest estimated economic benefits, followed by overall building sanitation and HVAC airflow. These elements produced economic benefits associated with high perceived work efficiency. The largest estimated economic benefits associated with low presenteeism was from desk lighting, which was the fourth largest economic benefit overall. The results suggest that healthy offices require not only improvements but also the removal of negative elements. These findings are expected to contribute to the realization of comfortable, healthy offices.