Not washing your hands after a trip to the loo, heading into work with a cough or cold and air kissing your co-worker on the cheek are the “gross” workplace habits that UK employees most want banned as the return to the office looms closer.

A recent poll by UK-based online printing service Instantprint found that hugging workmates and keeping dirty gym kits in the office are also high on the list of taboo behaviour.

Food and drink were also found to be key themes with sharing snacks, the communal tea-round and storing food in the workplace fridge overnight were all habits the nation is keen to bid farewell to.

Bad habits such as pen chewing, high-fiving colleagues and sitting on your co-workers’ desks all featured on the list of new workplace no-no’s.

While hugs and air kisses may have been unpopular even before Covid, the survey found that fist bumps and handshakes are also now off the cards too.

And with strict hygiene and social distancing guidance still in place, it comes as no surprise that four in 10 stated they’d be quick to call out colleagues whose habits they deemed to be “gross”.

Men were found to be the least tolerant with 45 per cent sharing they’d be likely to pull someone up on their bad habits, compared with just 37 per cent of women.

Head of Instantprint Laura Mucklow said: “The return to office life is obviously going to be a huge adjustment for many, especially if your team hasn’t worked face-to-face in over a year. Communication around how satisfied your team is has never been more vital than it is right now.”

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