BETTER WORK DONE IN GREEN BLDGS

Green buildings = Increased worker productivity
Melissa Hincha-Ownby, October 12, 2009 (Mother Nature Network)

"…[E]mployees in a green building are more productive than their counterparts in a standard building.

"Recent studies have shown that green buildings lead to higher rental income, lower occupancy rates, and an additional premium at the time of sale. Now [Green Buildings and Productivity] by the University of San Diego and CBRE allows building owners to add increased worker productivity to their list of green building benefits…"

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"Study authors examined the effects that telecommuting, health care maintenance, temperature, indoor air quality, indoor pollution, innovative workspaces, and several other factors influenced employee productivity…The report also discusses the effect that sick building syndrome (SBS) has on employees. Causes of SBS include inadequate ventilation, chemical contaminants from indoor and outdoor sources, and biological contaminants. Green building rating systems, like the LEED certification system by the U.S. Green Building Council, address these causes and guide building designers.

"The research team collected responses from 534 tenants in 154 buildings that were either LEED certified or were recognized by the EPA as an EnergyStar building…[T]o determine the productivity of workers in the building, tenants were asked to report on employees’ sick days and the self-reported productivity figures after the tenant moved into the green building."

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"…54.5 percent of tenants reported that employees are more productive with 12 percent strongly agreeing with this statement…45 percent…noticed a decrease in sick days since their individual company moved into the green building.

"Surprisingly, 10 percent of the tenants reported an increase in sick days taken by employees. However, every tenant represented by this 10 percent was in an EnergyStar rated building that was not also LEED certified. Further research is needed to help account for the increase in sick days…"