I work from home which leads to a blurring of personal printing and business printing costs. I’m not organised enough to have a separate printer or calculate the cost of printing to determine which are personal which are business. Megan uses the printer a lot to make things and for homework – I’m guessing she should pay for these expenses 😉 All joking aside did you realise that employees are costing UK businesses at least £40 million a year by printing personal documents at work?
TonerGiant.co.uk undertook this research and have a great infographic on their website but here are a few of my personal favourite findings.
- 79% of surveyed employees in the UK admit to using the printer at work for personal use which is approximately four in five workers
- Average office worker prints 25 sheets a day (25 sheets!! What of?!)
- Research found that of the 79% who admitted to printing personal documents, 9% said that they do this at least once a day
- 15% admit using the office printer to print off CV for job hunting
I’m guessing if you get to the point whereby you print 25 sheets of personal work including your CV then er …. you’re in the wrong job and have little or no respect left for your employer/business anymore! I’d certainly not like to be employing you!
The research is a clear indication of the lack of control that many businesses have with regards to printing, with 69% of organisations admitting that they don’t know how much printing actually costs them. Ink and toner costs are said to be the hardest to measure and I for one can vouch for that as I sometimes pick mine up in the supermarket and then forget to use that receipt.
Personal printing is just one area of needless ink/toner and paper wastage. Being a bit greener, such as printing on both sides of the page every time, and investing in the latest printer technology, or using black and white instead of colour are just some of the measures that businesses can take to reduce their personal printing and other types of printer wastage. At home we also shred unwanted used paper as it makes great compost or put it in your recycling bin.
Are you guilty of partaking in a spot of personal printing at work?
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