2026/02/16

You can't escape the floor! Consider the impact that office floors have on employee satisfaction

Raised Access Floor

If you are reading this column, you are probably using a computer or smartphone and touching your desk or chair.
Plus, there are other things that are touched upon.
That is the floor.
We cannot go through life without touching the floor at any time of the day.
Therefore, if there is a problem with the floor, most people will be affected in some way.
This time, we will focus on "employee satisfaction," which is gaining attention due to issues such as securing human resources, and consider how flooring affects it.

Two factors for improving employee satisfaction

According to the "two-factor theory" of motivation proposed by American clinical psychologist Frederick Herzberg, job satisfaction and motivation are related to two factors: "hygiene factors" and "motivators."
If hygiene factors are not met, dissatisfaction will increase, and if motivation factors are not met, satisfaction will not increase.
Examples of hygiene factors: salary, employee benefits, management policy, work environment (facilities, interpersonal relationships)
Examples of motivational factors: a sense of accomplishment at work, a large amount of responsibility and discretion, and opportunities for self-realization
To use a plant as an example, a plant can survive with soil and water (hygiene factors), but it will have difficulty growing large without sunlight and fertilizer (motivation factors).

Raised access floors in office facilities are one of the hygiene factors

Office facilities are the foundation of the working environment and are considered hygiene factors in the two-factor theory.
No matter how good your office facilities are, employees will not be motivated if they lack motivating factors.
However, if office facilities do not meet a certain standard, even if motivational factors are sufficient, employee dissatisfaction and stress may build up, leading to a decline in productivity.

Raised access floors, which have become standard office equipment since the early Heisei period, are also considered a hygiene factor.
Following this line of thinking, introducing a raised access floor and maintaining it in a healthy state can be said to be the minimum requirement to ensure a satisfactory environment.
*Raised Access Floor may not be required depending on the conditions.

Factors that lead to dissatisfaction with Raised Access Floors

The Raised Access Floor is an office facility that improves the functionality and comfort of offices by creating space under the floor to store wiring and making maintenance easier.
However, there are some things that can lead to employee dissatisfaction, such as:

1) Problems with wiring maintenance functions
・Wiring is overflowing
Difficult to remove the unit
2) Stability issues as a floor
・Wobble
・Noise
・Steps

Regarding issue ①, it is likely that wiring maintenance is often carried out by a specific person, so the impact is likely to be deep and limited.
Regarding issue ②, all employees working in the office will be affected.
Even if employees are unaware of the Raised Access Floor, they may unknowingly become dissatisfied.

Can't escape the floor

There are many elements that make up an office working environment, but floors are present in every office.
In modern society, it is impossible to work without touching the floor at all.
The Raised Access Floor is one of the elements that make up the floor.
If there are any defects, it is likely to lead to a decline in employee satisfaction in terms of the "workplace environment," which is a hygiene factor.
If your office has flooring problems, addressing them early may help prevent a decline in employee satisfaction.

We inspect, diagnose, repair and renew floors

Many problems with raised access floors are difficult to determine the cause of just by looking at them, and it is not uncommon for them to be difficult to fix by DIY.
In the previous column, weIntroducing our "Floor Health Checkup"　
In addition, we also handle repair and renewal work for Raised Access Floors.
We can also accommodate inquiries such as, "I would like you to first check the current situation," or "I would like to review the office layout and design."
If you have any concerns about Raised Access Floors, please feel free to contact us.