Tell your boss to plant it

New Zealanders are being urged to take plants into the workplace to create harmony and better productivity with the first ever Plant Life Balance Day on 2 March 2011.

Industry research shows employees would prefer an office that has plants, but most people don’t have greenery in their work areas.

Tracy Stephen of Ambius NZ says hot desks and space conservation almost buries office greenery but recent studies have proven the emotional and physical well-being associated with workplace greenery.

Plant Life Balance Day highlights the significant benefits plants bring to the workplace. Office plants:

• can cut down staff sick leave by up to 60 per cent
• foster greater staff productivity and efficiency
• support clearer thinking
• relieve stress and reduce negative mood states by up to 60 per cent.

“A more harmonious workplace could just be a peace lily away,” says Stephen. “Workers say offices with plants have cleaner air and they feel more positive at work with plants around them.”

“That’s an incredibly powerful message for all employers - use plants to improve the office environment, boost morale and increase productivity,” Ms Stephen said.

Professor Margaret Burchett and her colleagues from the Indoor Plants for Environmental Quality Group at the University of Technology Sydney have measured how effective plants are at removing pollutants from the air. They give foliage ‘two green thumbs up’.

“Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) emitted from plastic or synthetic materials in office furniture, fittings, computers and printers can cause headaches, loss of concentration and eye, nose and throat problems. Carbon dioxide (CO²) has been linked to drowsiness,” Professor Burchett said.

“Our research has proved that office plants can reduce VOCs by 80 percent and CO² by up to 25 percent, so the health benefits can be significant.”

Professor Burchett says just one plant is enough to make a positive difference to job satisfaction and performance in the workplace.

Ms Stephen says Ambius aims to make tending office plants as easy as possible because the work environment will be better off with some plant-life balance.

Plant Life Balance Day was created by the Nursery and Garden Industry Australia (NGIA) to foster a more pleasant and productive workplace.