Is your workplace harming your health?
Let me tell you about mine.
Several years ago the management/owners of the office building in Manhattan where I work sealed the windows.
Installing new, sealed windows as part of a cosmetic building upgrade is not an uncommon practice. These are windows that do not open.
My building is on Madison Avenue in mid-Manhattan, about three blocks from Rockefeller Center.
The windows were sealed sometime after 9/11. I jokingly said to several people they were getting us ready for a dirty bomb in Rockefeller Center.
The joke is, the unsafe environment is directly inside our building.
Follow me below the fold. Are you also working in an unsafe environment?
Yesterday the temperature in Manhattan soared to about 70 degrees. Inside my unventilated office the temperature probably hovered around 80 degrees.
I left around 7PM feeling ill and almost unable to walk home.
These are some physical symptoms of what is known as "sick building syndrome".
Poor indoor air quality can cause health problems. Symptoms of "sick building syndrome" include headaches, coughing, dizziness, fatigue, nausea, rashes, breathing problems, and irritation of the eyes, nose and throat, and other symptoms. Chemicals, infectious and physical agents can all affect air quality that results in illness and discomfort
Before the new windows were installed throughout the building, we had the old-fashioned kind. You could open them. You could close them. You even got fresh air, then if it became too cold, you might decide to close them again. Human beings require small things--air, water, occasional sun.
Since the windows were sealed, there has been no air circulation. NONE. Keep in mind, these are thick, triple pane windows which don't allow for any outside airflow whatsoever.
Even worse, this building was built in the early 60s. It now has sealed windows and our floor has a 1960s era HVAC system which was never intended for a sealed building.
In summer we do receive air conditioning. In New York City, by law the central air conditioning is turned on in sometime in late April or May. So if there are warm days before then, we suffer.
Here's where the situation gets interesting and should make everyone angry.
Several years ago, I called the maintenance department and begged them to do something about the horrific conditions. The chief engineer appeared at my office moments later and told me there was nothing he could do. He said that there was inadequate air on the floor and too many people.
The rate of air flow in a general office setting should, at a minimum, be 20 cubic feet of air per minute (cfm) per occupant. This recommendation comes from the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) standard 62-1989. The National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) also recommends this as a minimum rate of air flow.
He explained that when the windows were installed, it was the responsibility of the tenant on each floor to upgrade the HVAC (heating ventilation and air conditioning).
This is known as a tenant improvement.
Measuring the Air for Comfort Factors and Contaminants
Testing the air will confirm or rule out IAQ problems that show up during the walk through. The air samples that need to be taken include:
Carbon dioxide: High levels of carbon dioxide are a sign of poor ventilation. Carbon dioxide levels of 1,000 parts per million, which is 3 to 4 times higher than outside air, indicate inadequate ventilation.
Relative humidity and temperature: Humidity should be between 30 and 60 percent. Depending on the season and the humidity, temperatures should be in the range shown below.
The engineer told me in confidence, that the primary leaseholder on my floor elected not to make the upgrade citing the cost involved. I asked him if this was legal, and he said it was! As hard as it is to believe, this was a voluntary tenant upgrade
I suppose I could lodge an OSHA complaint. But I suspect that OSHA has been so stripped of money that it has become another ineffectual FEMA like agency. Also, if the engineer was correct, OSHA can't enforce a law that doesn't exist.
Also, a quick look at the OSHA site gives me a headache. It strikes me as complicated and user unfriendly. I may be wrong, and when I have a little more time, I'll see how difficult it is to file a complaint.
http://www.osha.gov/
The bottom line is, my workplace is unsafe. I'll bet many of you are also working in offices more appropriate to the third world.
http://www.afscme.org/...