The office water cooler is renowned for being the hub for office gossip and menial chats about nothing. But have your employees taken things a little too far? Are you finding your staff members are gone from their desks for long periods of time, then once you start to look for them you find them at the water cooler chatting away to another staff member?
This scenario happens frequently in workplaces all around the world. Bosses have complained about the water coolers claiming they cause an enormous amount of time to be wasted as employees grab a drink of water then spend another fifteen minutes chatting to whoever else is there at the time filling up their glass. Surely this is not the fault of the water cooler, but rather the employees?
If it’s something that is bothering you as an employer the solution is to talk to your employees about it, not remove all the water coolers from the office. Staff need access to clean drinking water at all times and need to be kept hydrated in order to be productive so it’s in your best interests as an employer to keep the coolers where they are.
Simply call a staff meeting and explain your concerns, tell them while you think it is ok to have the odd chat around the cooler a twenty minute gas bag session is not acceptable. Once you have voiced your opinions your employees should take them onboard and you should see a decrease in water cooler chat before the year is out.
The Water Cooler Company is London’s leading supplier of bottleless water coolers, if you would like any further information or would like to have a water cooler installed, please contact us on 0845 500 4455 or email [email protected]
