5 steps to overhauling plastic in the workplace

The American nature writer Annie Dillard famously said, “How we spend our days is, of course, how we spend our lives.” With the average person spending some 80,000 hours of their lifetime at work, the impact of the workplace on our habits and behaviours is profound. It’s why non-profit 80,000 hours exists, as “your career is not only a major driver of your happiness — it’s probably also your biggest opportunity to have a positive impact on the world.”

Prioritising reducing plastic and other eco-friendly choices for the workplace is not only the right thing to do, it’s also been shown to help employees turn eco-anxiety into positive action, which in turn can lead to improved employee retention and financial resilience. Taking it one step further to make a positive impact? Now that’s something to strive for. Read on as we guide you on how best to set a positive example for colleagues and foster a culture of sustainability and social value.

Why Workplace Plastic Reduction Matters More Than Ever

The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) recently announced a major overhaul of recycling policies in England. Soon, recycling will all go into one bin under simpler collection plans. While this might seem like a positive step towards environmental efficiency, recent research by the UK advertising watchdog, the ASA, found that while consumers are engaged with green disposal at home, they are reluctant to do more outside of the home. DEFRA’s plan raises the question of whether we are placing too much responsibility on individuals instead of holding businesses and governments accountable. 

The Big Plastic Count, a groundbreaking 2024 campaign by Greenpeace and Everyday Plastic, highlighted the severity of our plastic crisis with a view to influencing the UN’s Global Plastics Treaty. A mere 17% of household plastic waste from this count was shown to be recycled. Meanwhile a Duke’s Nicholas School of the Environment reports that“only 9% of plastic is recycled and only one tenth of that amount has been recycled more than once over the last 50 years.” 

Production still far outweighs recycling efforts. As Edie.net reported in January 2024, many CPG businesses of the more than 1,000 signed up to the Ellen Macarthur Foundation plastic reduction commitment have in fact increased plastic usage by 8.4% in the name of revenue growth. 

Recycling alone will not fix our plastic crisis. It’s on manufacturers to make a change so that we can halt the flow of fossil fuel-based plastics into our homes and workplaces. Workers in many respects are hamstrung, having less control than in their own homes to affect decision-making when it comes to supplies available and systems at play. In fact, Business Waste finds that the average office worker generates about 500kg of waste annually, but 54% of Gen Z workers say they’re putting pressure on employers to tackle environmental issues. 

We need to think carefully about how we can drastically reduce and work towards eliminating plastic in the workplace. As Daniel Webb, Founder and Director of Everyday Plastic, explains: “Businesses play a vital role in tackling the plastics crisis.”

Webb believes businesses should not focus so much on end-of-life management for plastics, such as recycling, and should instead support solutions like removal, reuse, and refill. “Currently, there is just way too much plastic being produced for recycling to ever play a star role,” he says. It’s a rallying cry to those with the power to influence workplace culture.

How to Reduce Plastic in the Workplace

Webb emphasises that workplace plastic reduction is often driven by passionate individuals or green teams rather than senior management. “We need more support from top-level management, investing resources in developing green teams and providing a prominent platform for them to implement solutions and share knowledge,” he advocates. 

Facilitating collective action to eliminate plastic waste at work can seem daunting, but creating opportunities for employees to collaborate and contribute to sustainability initiatives needn’t be complicated. Here are five ways to get started with some inspiration from forward-thinking organisations that are already pioneering ways to tackle plastic waste.

Conduct a plastic audit

As a first step, encourage an audit to identify where the business currently stands in terms of plastic usage and where quick wins can be made to minimise plastic consumption. Touchpoints to consider include supply chain (catering, stationery, etc.), marketing materials, apparel like lanyards, employee behaviour and waste management.

Everyone from janitorial teams to procurement managers can support in reviewing the waste your organisation produces and determining what percentage is plastic. 

For businesses with warehousing, consider bringing in specialists to run a dedicated audit and reduce single-use plastic usage, for example on pallets and through tape usage.

 

As for your HQ, you might want to break your audit down by area, such as kitchen, bathroom and office supplies. These are three places where plastic use is prevalent and reduction is feasible. Simple swaps include switching out plastic soap dispensers for refillable versions, providing plastic-free period products and choosing pantry items that are delivered without wrap or come in compostable wrappers like our new brand partner, All Real.

Set clear goals

After the audit, set realistic and achievable goals for plastic reduction both for the current year and for the longer term. These goals should align with the company’s budget and overall strategies. Having clear targets will help keep the team focused and motivated.

For example, Slalom conducted an environmental impact assessment in 2020 for the first time to find its benchmark and set a goal, namely: “to embrace sustainability, including achieving carbon-neutral emissions and shifting to 100% renewable energy by or before 2030.” This is published publicly with annual progress highlights, including more sophisticated commitments and methodologies like the Climate Pledge and SBTi Criteria. 

The consultancy’s yearly impact reports provide a deeper dive into the ways the global organisation is reducing plastic specifically, such as recycling, events merch and office snacks. 

Educate and engage employees

Ensure that everyone in the team understands the plastic problem and how it impacts them personally. This connection is vital for fostering a genuine commitment to reducing plastic waste. Workshops and talks can help raise awareness and inspire action.

Law firm Clarke Willmott’s Head of ESG, Karen Higgins works to incentivise and inspire the right actions with campaigns like the “10 day sprint” run by Couch to Carbon Zero.  Every day our people would get a short video in their inbox with actions they could take to reduce their environmental impact in a certain area such as plastics, recycling, pensions etc.  Those that engaged the most across the 10 days were put into a pot and prizes allocated.  Creating such a positive buzz around sustainable actions can help inspire engagement and healthy competition between colleagues, which additional external resources, such as employee sustainability app Giki, can support.

Slalom backs up their efforts to meet sustainability goals with team activities such as beach cleans with organisations like Clean Up Australia. Such activations can keep plastic reduction top of mind for teams who might be procuring items for workplace use. Many come to Social Supermarket for just this reason – following a company-wide directive that galvanises them to rethink traditional event giveaway items, for instance, and instead opt for sustainable branded merch like meadow grass pens that also fund clean water donations. 

 

Implement reuse and refill systems

Businesses should focus on reuse and refill systems instead of relying solely on recycling. This approach can significantly reduce plastic waste and promote a circular economy. 

For example, providing refill stations over bottled water in conference rooms and office canteens, like our partner Inhabit Hotels, who has received a Green Key award for sustainability efforts. Here Belu filtered water stations populate every floor of the venue, with 100% of Belu’s profits going to WaterAid.

Another such business is Bloomberg. In 2020 the media biz launched the Fill it Forward program in an effort to encourage increased use of reusable cups and reduced waste. The initiative was open to employees in more than 40 offices around the world. Every time Bloomberg employees refill a reusable cup or bottle at home or in the office, they simply open the app and scan their Fill it Forward tag. Each scan counts for a donation to a clean water project. 

Report on the impact of sustainable and plastic-free office supplies

Track and report the impact of your plastic reduction efforts. Ordering gifts and supplies through our Gifting Platform means you can automatically generate impact reports, showcasing the social and environmental benefits created.

Imagine, you gift Ocean Bottle’s reusable water bottles for employee recognition programmes and can then report on the plastic removed from your workplace, as well as the number of plastic bottles diverted from the ocean. 

Sharing these reports and social impact stories can boost morale and highlight the company’s commitment to sustainability.

A Brighter Future with Plastic-Free Solutions

The journey towards eliminating plastic in the workplace is challenging but essential. By taking small steps, employers can lead by example and inspire employees to use the power of big business to make a positive difference. The plastic crisis is a shared problem that requires a collective effort. By choosing plastic-free products, supporting innovative solutions, and advocating for systemic change, we can create a more hopeful future.

At Social Supermarket, we offer a range of plastic-free stationery and other sustainable products to help businesses make the transition.

Get in touch and speak to us about office supplies and sustainable branded merchandise and take a significant step towards a plastic-free workplace.