British workers most annoying habits revealed

As the search to find the 2011 UK Worker of the Year (UKWOTY) continues, the competition has unearthed the British Workforce’s biggest bugbears about their work colleagues.

The activity that is taking place on Facebook, Twitter and the UKWOTY blog has attracted the attention of people from an even wider range of professions than before. This activity includes news updates, competitions, polls, opinion pieces and spot-prize giveaways.

In the spirit of bettering existing work practices, Dickies also asked the question on the Worker of the Year blog, ’What most annoys you about your co-workers?’

The British workforce was keen to offer its ideas. It would appear that the nation does indeed march on its stomach, because it would seem on the basis of the responses, that food issues are top of the list of potential ways in which we can offend our co-workers.

The fridge monsters who eat other peoples’ food are viewed as pests in the workplace, as are people who eat smelly food in the office.

Other food topics include; people who leave dirty mugs or plates in the works kitchen or around the office, and co-workers who don’t make the tea or coffee but always happily accept someone else making it for them’.

Overall, the three most common themes were: bad habits involving food; people who don’t do what they’re supposed to e.g. leaving the phone ringing for someone else to pick up or simply not doing their fair share of work and general politeness eg People who don’t thank other for doing something.

There were also a number of entries relating to ’toilet etiquette’ ’’

’The main object of this exercise was to start a fun discussion among people interested in the competition, but it does seem to have provoked some lively responses,’ enthuses Dickies Sales and Marketing Director, Maurice Morton. ’I reckon that just about everyone has worked with someone whose behaviour and habits are likely to upset their colleagues, but I was a little surprised to see just how strongly people feel about food matters. I suppose it shows you just how much food matters!’