What’s your stance on coworkers who have little to no personal hygiene?

13 comments

1. Talk to HR about it, they would be better at handling it.

2. I’d prefer they aren’t near me. If it was causing issues, I would bring it up to HR so they could handle it. It’s not for me to say anything to them about their hygiene in a professional setting.

3. Go to HR, or at the very least your supervisor.

4. I’d report them to the appropriate higher-up. I don’t think it’s my place to tell a coworker about their bad hygiene, but I also shouldn’t have to be affected by it.

5. I’d never confront them (could be taken personally). It’s a Boss/H.R. issue to tackle imo.

6. Talk to HR. They get paid to handle things like this. I’ve complained to HR about several hygiene related things at work and they’ve gotten dealt with.

7. We work in a hospital, it’s an immediate verbal warning followed by paperwork. This ain’t the place for that

8. I had a coworker that didn’t take regular showers and she just had a sour smell, it was every 3 or 4 days, I hated it. I talked with her but they didn’t helped, so on those days I would reserve a conference room, tell everyone I was swamped and work from there… I just couldn’t concentrate with the smell

9. Mention it to HR and let them handle it.

10. I’d try and get more info. Some people don’t realize it. One time I worked with a guy who smelled pretty bad and had really bad breath. Everyone talked crap about him. I took him to the side and asked how he was doing. Turned out he was homeless and living out of his car. Didn’t have the resources to shower and stuff.

    Approach this with care first.

11. Talk to HR. That’s above my pay grade.

12. I work from home, but even in the office, we don’t have assigned offices. So I’d probably just pick up my stuff and move away feigning a draft.

    I’d never flat out tell someone they smelled. Especially since they may have a medical or just life issue I’m not aware of that could cause it.

13. Fortunately, I am not required to spend much time around people with bad hygiene. As someone with OCD and autism, I have difficulty handling bad smells and am a bit of a germaphobe. My reaction when I encounter such people is to avoid them like the plague.