Telling a colleague they smell is the hardest workplace conversation, according to a new study.
The research found it is a much more awkward topic to raise than someone's work being substandard, their clothing being inappropriate or their timekeeping being poor.And sweaty odours were found to be the most annoying smells in the office, ahead of smelly feet, fishy foods and bad breath. The study by women’s intimate healthcare brand, Balance ActivTM, in collaboration with Cardiff University, reveals that half of us (51 percent) have no idea how to tell someone they need to address the way they smell. It also found we resort to peculiar methods in order to smell fresh, with 11 percent of men admitting they've borrowed their partner's perfume after forgetting to put on deodorant, while one in 20 women have used air freshener. Two thirds of the nation (66 percent) voted 'telling a colleague they smell' the hardest conversation to start, well ahead of 'telling them their work is not good enough', at just nine percent.
Telling them their clothes are inappropriate (4 percent) came next in a list of awkward topics, matched by scolding them for not working hard enough (4 percent), followed closely by bringing up their poor timekeeping (2 percent). It seems odorous colleagues have caused tension in many British offices. A fifth of office workers (19 percent) have complained to bosses about a colleague's smell, while 15 percent admit they have moved desk to escape an odour.
One in eight (12 percent) have taken the bull by the horns and confronted a workmate directly, while one in twenty say they simply left a can of deodorant on their desk and hoped they took the hint. Women were the most likely to be offended by a smelly co-worker with a third saying they wouldn’t take them seriously. Going even further, almost half of British women say they wouldn’t employ someone with odour issues, compared to just a third of men. When it comes to their own odours, women were the most likely to let it affect their work with 13 percent claiming it affects their concentration, compared with just 10 percent of men. Almost two thirds (62 percent) felt it reduced their opportunities at work, while only half of men felt this way.
Unsurprisingly, having an unpleasant odour is having an impact on personal lives too, with women (40 percent) more likely than men (25 percent) to let it affect their confidence. Over a third of females claim a bad odour affects their social life but interestingly men were more likely (18 percent) than women (16 percent) to let it stop them from going out altogether. Odour is also having a major impact on women’s love lives, with almost two fifths (37 percent) admitting having an unpleasant odour gets in the way and 28 percent saying it stops them from getting intimate.
Andrew Smith, Professor of Psychology at Cardiff University, commented: “Evolution led to us avoiding bad smells because they were associated with contaminated food and disease. In more recent times the subject has become difficult to discuss and people, especially women, tend to suffer in silence rather than complaining about bad smells. Women are likely to be very sensitive because of biological reasons and also social norms. As the research shows, this sensitivity influences their wellbeing at work, rest and play.”
Balance ActivTM spokesperson Helen Knox, a sexual health nurse specialist, said: “This research was commissioned to gain a further understanding of how unpleasant odours impact on women’s professional and social lives and the stigma often associated with someone who suffers from an unpleasant smell. “Bacterial Vaginosis (BV) is the most common intimate health condition and one of its main symptoms is an unpleasant intimate odour, but awareness is low with just 32 percent of women knowing what BV is. This lack of education means thousands of women are suffering with intimate odour issues without needing to.”
Top 10 most annoying smells at work:
Sweaty smells – 57 percent
Bad breath – 55 percent
Bad wind – 37 percent
Smelly feet – 35 percent
Fishy foods – 33 percent
Other body odours – 29 percent
Spicy foods – 15 percent
Meaty foods – 10 percent
Cooked vegetables – 7 percent
Cigarette smoke – 2 percent
