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How the office environment affects employees’ mental health

Before the pandemic, an average office worker spends 40 or 50 hours per week inside the workplace. As businesses prep for the new normal and business re-entry post-lockdown, commercial landlords and property owners begin to realize how the office space impacts and affects the overall well-being and safety of their employees.  

RELATED: Taking care of your mental health: Why it matters in time of a pandemic

The new normal presents an opportunity to provide a better work environment for employees and uplift their mental well-being. While most local and international guidelines and protocols focus on the safety of employees and reducing any potential exposure to the virus, it is also essential to consider how returning to the office will impact workers’ mental health. Many studies show that office spaces impact the mental health and cognitive function of employees, especially as they face more stress and anxiety while working. According to research, employees inside a confined space for long periods of time can suffer from mental burnout, demotivation, and added stress.

In a report by Entrepreneur, a healthy workforce can improve output due to lower stress levels and employee absences. A more holistic approach is also encouraged by some experts. In the same report, the corporate wellness program can go beyond physical, mental, social, and emotional needs. Mental health is an aspect that is most often overlooked by employees and employers alike when

Managing Stress and Anxiety

A healthy workplace can help employees manage stress and relieve anxiety. According to commercial interior designers, certain aspects of the office can contribute to increasing motivation, boosting morale, and productivity.

Gensler reported that biophilic and green features such as outdoor spaces and access to natural lighting can help reduce stress, anger, and anxiety. It can also lead to improved self-esteem and a better image of self in the long run.

Experts suggest that providing areas when employees can take a break, relax, and socialize is a simple step in helping them cope with the workload better and reduce the feeling of burnout while in the workplace. In the post-pandemic timeline, companies should be careful in providing common and social spaces while still strictly implementing physical and social distancing measures to protect employees from contracting the virus.


READ MORE: Safer and Better Normal: What’s the best workspace layout in a post-pandemic world?

Better Brain Function

Studies prove that the brain’s cognitive performance is affected by the environment it is in. Workplace strategists and design experts suggest that offering a multi-sensory design in the office can improve the employees’ mental health and boost their cognitive function. Stimulating people’s senses of sight, touch, smell, and hearing can lead to a better performance at work in a less stressful and overwhelming environment.

One research found that occupants of a healthy workplace scored higher in cognitive tests, slept better, and reported fewer health symptoms. Green features such as access to natural light, green walls, and optimal indoor air quality are also proven to significantly impact the employees’ thinking abilities, capabilities to focus, and retain information. Moreover, they are more productive and inspired to complete tasks at hand.

Premium Green Buildings for Mental Health

Premium green buildings and commercial developments, such as JEG Tower @ One Acacia, ensure that the workplace design does not compromise the safety, security, and functionality of the space. Instead, it adds value to the often-overlooked aspect of design, which is to promote holistic wellness to its occupants.

By providing safe spaces where tenants can relax, socialize, and reflect, JEG Tower @ One Acacia lives up to its vision of advocating for the overall well-being of its occupants while in the office. A healthy workplace should go beyond physical modifications and provide greater support for employees to their psychosocial needs. Backed by JEG Development Corporation’s vision of revolutionizing work-life balance in Cebu City, JEG Tower promotes the importance of mental health and stress management in the office and offers realistic measures on how to address it.

Want to learn more about JEG Tower @ One Acacia? Contact Lorenzo Rodriguez at (+63) 917-825-6884. For inquiries and more information, call us at (+63) 2-8403-5519 or send an email to info@kmcmaggroup.com.

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Safer and Better Normal: What’s the best workspace layout in a post-pandemic world?

The pandemic has forever changed the way people live and work. As the whole world continues to adapt to a safer, healthier, and better normal, the concept of effective and efficient workspace layouts has been challenged to incorporate health and well-being for its tenants.

As many companies allow a more flexible working arrangement, workplace strategists suggest maximizing the office space as a venue for socialization and collaboration without compromising the safety of its occupants.

Open Floor Layouts—with Restrictions

While some argue that the trend toward an open floor workplace design will begin to fade due to the threats of the virus, the idea of “openness” in the office can still be created through creating non-hierarchical spaces, a variety of flexible work environments, and space planning that encourages the sharing of ideas. An open office is still the best way to foster social relationships and open opportunities to build teamwork between colleagues. Workplace strategists, however, reiterated the importance of implementing physical and social distancing measures to protect employees from contracting the virus.

Layout 1: Open Office – Workstations are positioned in various configurations, some touching, others clustered in various sizes of work zones. Everyone in the office sits together, including managers, and discussions flowing freely across the open space.

Layout 2: Cellular Office – In this popular layout, the entire office space is divided into individual spaces (or cubicles) arranged for employees to each have private spaces. It provides a focused work environment and lends well to a systematization of office operations. Ceiling studs, windows, doors, or partitions are used to create individual spaces.

Layout 3: Co-working – Working without designated workspaces. You can assign desks to workers based on their assigned job. This arrangement can be ideal for promoting social interaction among staff members.

Workplace strategists added that a strict implementation of social and physical distancing guidelines in the workplace should be the key in implementing a well-balanced office for employees returning to work in the new normal. Office should still be an integral part of any business and its essence remains on the space it provides for employees’ mental, physical, emotional, and social needs while at work.

RELATED: The Future of Workplace: Contactless features and smart technology

Smart and Contactless Workplaces

Many businesses adapt to the new normal by incorporating innovation and advanced technology in the office. Workspaces are slowly transitioning to become contactless or low-touch spaces to reduce the chances of cross-infection among colleagues. Smart offices are workspaces that utilize automated processes to enhance building operations, from air conditioning and heating, lighting, and security.

Building developers and commercial institutions should consider the benefits of new advancements in technology such as voice or motion-activated technology in office spaces and common areas like elevators, copy rooms, restrooms, and meeting rooms.

Future-forward commercial establishments such as JEG Tower @ One Acacia, also integrate advanced technology to provide a smart and healthy workplace for its tenants and occupiers. JEG Tower @ One Acacia utilizes the MERV-13 air filters and Fresh Air System for optimal indoor air quality, which is one of the more crucial aspects of being in an enclosed space amid the pandemic. The tower also uses the Fresh Air System that ensures the comfort of its tenants. According to the Environment Protection Agency (EPA), building occupants with little or no access to fresh air end up being more exposed to pollutants indoors compared to when they go outdoors. HVAC systems tend to circulate and recycle old air rather than drawing new and fresh air from the outside.

READ MORE: Why JEG Tower is the perfect new normal workplace

Premium-grade office developments, such as JEG Tower @ One Acacia, are pivoting their office re-entry strategies and offering safer and healthier spaces for businesses and tenants. This 22-storey green commercial development in Metro Cebu uplifts the health and wellness of its tenants. Committed to revolutionizing work and life balance, the building has designed office spaces to maximize the use of natural daylight, allow better indoor air quality in all work and common spaces, and organize initiatives to encourage healthier living for everyone.

Want to learn more about JEG Tower @ One Acacia? Contact Lorenzo Rodriguez at (+63) 917-825-6884. For inquiries and more information, call us at (+63) 2-8403-5519 or send an email to info@kmcmaggroup.com.