For companies able to establish successful work-from-home programs in response to recent pandemic conditions, many are now beginning the process of bringing their employees back into the offices. No surprise there. What you might find surprising though is one of the most important employee “perks” or incentives to working in commercial spaces is the availability of optimal amounts of natural light. According to a recent study conducted by the Harvard Business Review, it was pointed out that employee access to natural light is the #1 attribute of the workspace environment.

As employees quickly moved away from their corporate offices and into their home offices almost two years ago, most didn’t properly account for the importance of lighting and how it directly affected their workdays.

The good news is commercial buildings and their facilities teams now have the proper tools at their disposal to begin filling this void and establishing a solid reason for employees to want to come back to the office – the availability of quality natural lighting.

According to the article a high-quality workplace — one with natural light, good ventilation, and comfortable temperatures — can reduce absenteeism up to four days a year.  With unscheduled absenteeism costing companies an estimated $3,600 annually per hourly worker and $2,650 each year for salaried workers, this can have a major impact on your bottom line.

Recent advancements in LED control technology along with overall product cost reductions and government rebate incentives have made it more realistic than ever for commercial buildings to begin implementing Network Lighting Controls into their existing building systems.

Network Lighting Control Systems provide the ability to create and customize optimal natural light levels that exceed employee expectations and improve their overall wellbeing and productivity levels. Substantial long-term energy and efficiency savings allow for early investment paybacks as well. If you’re looking for another way to improve your workspace environment, consider the impact that quality lighting can provide.

Your employees, and bottom line, will thank you.