Gossiping, complaining and messy workspaces are the top pet peeves driving employees to wish for new colleagues in 2018, with many believing they could do a better job than their manager, according to research from CABA, the charity that supports the wellbeing of chartered accountants
The study of 2,000 adults based in the UK showed that over half (59%) of British employees find their work colleagues impact their productivity, with 19% stating that the biggest distractions in the office is often not work related.
The data highlights that although work colleagues are ranked highly when searching for employment, with 41% citing this as a decisive factor in taking a job, they actually prove to be the biggest distraction too.
Over a quarter (28%) of employees revealed that they get annoyed by their colleagues pretending to work harder than they are. Other gripes included talking or gossiping about non-work related things too much (22%) and being quick to complain about workloads (20%). Colleagues taking credit for their co-workers work was another major annoyance, which one in 10 employees flagged.
Whilst on the whole, colleagues believed they had a strong relationship with their manager, over a quarter (28%) feel they could actually do a better job than them. More worryingly, 28% also said that they have a dispute with a colleague or manager at least once a fortnight.
Kelly Feehan, services director for CABA, said: ‘Colleagues have a profound impact on their co-workers’ performance and job satisfaction, and a poor work ethic and attitude can drive employees to low productivity, absenteeism or even quitting a post. Behaviour can be contagious, so employees may, consciously or unconsciously, mirror the actions and attitudes of their workplace peers.’
However, the research also highlighted the importance of strong work relationships, with nearly a third of employees (31%) reporting they like spending time with their colleagues and 30% saying they rely on their peers to help manage stressful situations at work.
Feehan said: ‘Establishing and maintaining good work relationships is the key to a positive workplace. It’s fair to say that we don’t get on with our colleagues every minute of the day, so the solution to a successful working environment is striking the balance between having fun and working productively.’
Report by Pat Sweet
