Tricks used to lure WFH staff back to office

The entire 38th floor of the City’s ‘Cheesegrater’ skyscraper is set to be turned into an escape room game for stressed office workers to blow off steam.

The building’s owner, CC Land, says the idea is for co-workers to better collaborate and “have fun” together as they compete to win Crystal Maze-style tasks. 

Meanwhile at 22 Bishopsgate, the Square Mile’s newest tower, bosses are offering “puppy yoga” - stretches plus dog cuddles - to try and boost colleagues’ serotonin between IRL meetings and crunching spreadsheets.

They are among strategies to try and tempt working-from-home staff back to the Covid-era physical office.

That’s on top of street food stalls, ice cream deliveries, craft classes and massages in what’s the Times reports is the “hotelification” of workplaces, or “office 2.0”.

It’s no longer tech giants bringing high-end freebies to blur the lines between nine to five - now, many of traditional City firms are spending big on renting space with wellbeing extras.

But does these techniques actually improve productivity or job satisfaction, and does anyone really want boss-approved good times in a “vertical village”?

To find out more about stress-busting ideas being designed into offices of the near future, The Leader’s joined by workplace wellbeing consultant Emma James, chief operating officer at Kamwell, an employee wellbeing company.

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