Humans are creatures of habit – especially when it comes to office culture.
We like to eat lunch at the same time, collect our Diet Cokes at exactly 3pm, and most importantly, sit at the same desk every single day.
Or at least, we used to.
Post-pandemic, hot desking has become the norm for a lot of people – whether in a co-working space or in a permanent office. Hybrid work soared, companies cut costs, and assigned seats quietly disappeared.
Office layouts tend to be more fluid than ever. And in some companies, where floating desks work on a first come first serve basis, things can get a bit thorny.
That was certainly the case for one Redditor, who goes by the handleu/purplereuben, who was left more than a little put out when their beloved usual desk was mercilessly pinched.
‘A few days ago I came into the office in the morning and someone else’s belongings were on ‘my’ desk,’ they wrote.
‘Surprising, but not a problem – if someone arrived before me, they are perfectly entitled to take that desk.
‘Except they didn’t arrive before me. They hadn’t come in yet. They left their belongings on the desk overnight and sauntered in one hour after me. The next day was the same. I came in to find their stuff on the desk but they were nowhere to be found until an hour later.’
The situation led to a shocking realisation for u/purplereuben: ‘Out of nowhere they just made the decision that the desk I had used for 2 years straight was now permanently reserved for them.’
Commenters were sympathetic to this workers grief.
Some called hot desking ‘horrible,’ branding it ‘the height of inconvenience,’ and have even said it sends them into a ‘frothing rage.’
But is this just something workers have to accept now in post-pandemic office culture? Or is there still a way to clutch onto a modicum of decorum?
Why are we so territorial over our desks?
‘Desks are surprisingly personal, even when we’re told they’re not,’ career coach Hannah Salton tells Metro. ‘So without some shared understanding of etiquette, frustration can build very quickly.
‘Many offices describe themselves as ‘hot desking,’ but in reality the same people sit at the same desks 99% of the time. That creates an unspoken sense of ownership, even if it’s not officially acknowledged.
”When someone then uses ‘your’ usual desk – or leaves it untidy, monopolises certain areas, or bends the rules — it can feel personal, even when it isn’t.’
Hannah also notes that a lot of companies will give allocated desks to senior members of staff, which can also cause resentment.
‘Employees can feel that the burden of flexibility is unfairly placed on them, which only heightens tensions between colleagues,’ she adds.
Can someone just take your desk?
Hannah says that the ‘tricky’ thing about hot desking is that ‘everyone will have slightly different views on what feels acceptable.’
However, she warns that a big no-no is sabotaging a desk that has been usurped.
‘This is almost guaranteed to escalate the situation and damage working relationships,’ she says.
‘It can make you look unreasonable, even if your frustration is justified.’
Hannah advocates a ‘staying calm’ approach, as does William Stokes, CEO of co-working space chain, Co-space.
He reminds us that a desk ‘never truly belongs to one person.’
‘People naturally gravitate towards areas with good light, strong Wi-Fi or nearby plugs,’ he says. So, unfortunately, your best option is to be accommodating. ‘Flexibility only works when everyone accepts that spaces are shared,’ he adds.
However, if you really can’t keep your cool, leadership and workplace expert Drew Povey says you can take the issue higher.
‘Employees should raise the problem with a manager rather than letting it fester,’ he tells Metro.
But, there’s a way to go about it.
‘It’s important to focus on the behaviour, not the person,’ he says. ‘Frame your concerns around fairness and productivity.
‘Managers should then reinforce expectations consistently, so no one feels singled out.’
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