People wearing ear plugs in the workplace

[PatriarchyPersonified]

I probably am being unreasonable but...

Random one this one. I work in an open plan office that probably contains about 30 people on a busy day, in an area the size of two tennis courts. (Roughly).

The only noise is normal day to day activity, low level conversations and the occasional phone call. No machinery or radios etc.

A person who has recently started working here has taken to wearing ear plugs in the office. (Think noise reducing in ear defender type things that are used by people who shoot) when asked why they said it "helps them concentrate".

Now I suppose that's fair enough but this has prompted a couple of other people to start doing the same thing, including wearing old fashioned ear defender type headsets (think 1960s headphones) that block out all external noise.

Now we have three or four (depending on the day) people who are completely cut off from everything but their screens, to the point where you have to wave a hand in front of their face if you want to offer them a tea.

It feels a bit, well, rude.

I feel sorry for the people who have to sit next to them, because they are effectively isolated from any human contact for the entire day.

I can't see it being a management issue, as I don't think they are doing anything wrong technically. But it is making some people feel uncomfortable in work.

Is this normal practice?

Gilead

Why not? He heavy breaths because he is so overweight, therefore triggering my Misophonia massively!

to some people the click of your mouse keyboard tapping sniffing and teaspoon stirring a mug is pure torture...the earplugs might be the only way they can cope

Noise cancelling ones are great. They block out low level background sound but you can still hear people talking to you.

I generally am okay with sound and can tune it out, but there's occasional days where I'm over-sensitive to any kind of noise. I wouldn't be able to have the radio on in the car, for example, because it would stop me from concentrating on the road. In work, people slurping tea or chattering would distract me to the point where I wouldn't be able to work and it would actually feel physically painful. If I felt like that every day, I wouldn't be able to work without headphones.

I love it but could never afford or justify buying it.

Pansies are a bit twee but nice

your4walls.co.uk/wallpaper-categories.html?gclid=EAIaIQobChMIr6HN8Kmj2QIVpzLTCh0ZTACJEAQYDiABEgLTSfD_BwE#!/Watercolour-Pansies-multicoloured-finely-textured-Pansy-floral-Wallpaper/p/63116420

Thanks @oldhag

You’re there to work, it’s not a social club. Chat during breaks or meet up after work.

Some people talk non stop and need constant noise and interaction. Others need quiet in order to concentrate.

I wonder if there’s a difference in the work output between the two types of people. In my workplace, the social chatterers get less done.

Why not? He heavy breaths because he is so overweight, therefore triggering my Misophonia massively!
I have a ds who breaths heavily, he's not overweight.
Do you know why he's overweight?
Do you think it's fair or nice?
Do you think you need to share that information with other people?
How would you feel if said colleague shared personal information that could be upsetting, about you?
It really isn't necessary. Heavy breathing colleague would have been fine.

Gilead

I don't think said colleague goes on mumsnet much...........he's overweight because he eats too much and exercises too little...oh and he's massively horrible to me much of the time but I guess he's the victim??

That's a very good idea, I can't believe people actually moan about others trying to get some work done.

if you need to get someones attention, you can normally say their name from halfway across the office and they will hear you
and so will the rest of the office, lucky them

I would question the ear plugs if you were a primary school teacher or a nurse on a ward, but in an office? YABU

Sorry wrong thread - obviously (nice wallpaper though). 🤓

Re - ear defenders etc not the place in an office - don’t they have to answer the phone or interact with people?

YABU sorry! I work in an open plan office and wearing noise cancellation headphones helps me crack on and get stuff done without being interrupted for small talk all the time. I don't miss any phone calls as they come through to my watch as well.

People who need to talk to me will tap me or wave. I don't do this every min of every day but if i didn't find a couple of hours in my bubble - i wouldnt get anything done.

I should also say I work in a company/space where this is pretty much the norm - also there is music playing all day long in the background and I prefer a different kind of music to focus

Management provided me with noise cancelling headphones because there is so much noise in the office it's impossible to work.

Yesterday the people behind me had a 2 hour discussion about babies, because one is a first time expectant mum. None of the others have DC and the crap they were coming out with was raising my blood pressure. Last Friday the same little group had a long discussion on people who don't change their names on marriage. Honestly I had to check I hadn't stumbled into an episode of Houseparty.

Houseparty

Today the 3 young girls right at the end of the office were shrieking at each-other over the desks; the man in front of me didn't need an actual telephone to speak to someone on Mars, he was that loud. The mums group were talking about work but really loudly, and somebody was shredding a whole sack of paper.

There are 80 people in our open-plan office and not exaggerating I'm sure 60 of them were trying to be heard over everyone else. It is bedlam.

Where I've worked in the past managers will let people chat for a bit then come over and ask people to get on with their work. Here even the really senior managers say nothing and it just goes on and on.

I can only work alone. I have not shraed a room at work with anyone for over about 25 years. We all differ. I think having to share an office is absolutely dreadful. I need my own office with the door shut and the days I need to speak to no one are red letter days!

Is it the look of them that's puts you off a bit? After all, you would be unreasonable to complain about a person with hearing difficulties working in your office, if that makes sense?

We've moved over to skype so everyone now has headphones.
Before the change, it was generally thought of as a no no because we're a service function and It was off-putting to our "business partners" but now everyone does it. I listen to music about 30% of the time.
I don't think It's anti social to wear them all the time but I do think you miss out on a lot of peripheral work related conversation and things that are going on in the business by opting out completely. We have focus rooms and poss if you need to concentrate on something specific

My employer provides these ear defenders for people who want them. One of our managers wears them a lot. I find the office quiet enough, but some people are distracted by small amounts of noise.

Good for them, if I'd have been allowed to wear them at my workplace I would. I'd have loved to noise-cancel the fuck out of our weirdo receptionist and his constant waffling about cats or his "tummy troubles". That dude would talk and talk without directing conversation to any particular person and could carry on without anyone commenting in return. I'd have got a lot more work done with ear defenders.

They're a recognised 'workplace adjustment' for various conditions - a number of people have them where I work and find them helpful; so yes, YABU, but I can understand why you feel they could have an isolating effect.

Lots of people have sensory processing disorders, so perhaps they use them for this to help them to concentrate or block out noise? We have several children in school who need to wear them. I have tinnitus and use them when there is a lot of background noise. I wouldn't immediately think that people were being rude. Unless you have Victor Meldrew working there 😂

I wear ear buds (listening to music) in my office because no one talks to me / makes plans around me without inviting me and generally just treat me like I'm invisible so I mainly do it to block them out.

Lettuce, I'm sorry he's horrid to you, doesn't mean you have to be to him. I am defensive. I have another son who for various reasons is overweight, as in morbidly obese. You weren't there when the police brought him back from the bridge he was going to jump from. Twice. Because he is fat. You're not there when he cries because he thinks he'll never have a girlfriend. You're not there when he loses three or four stone and immediately has to go back on medication so puts it on again. You're not there when he pulls in to Maccies to get me a coffee and people tell him that he's the reason the NHS is fucked. He's in his thirties. So yeah, it's possible that your colleague is a victim too. Doesn't give him the right to be a dick to you though.

YABU. I have no sensory disorders, I just can't stand listening to millennials & gen Z bang on about young people things and say "like" every second word all day. So I wear a headset and either listen to music or enjoy the sound of silence, as do many of my colleagues. If you want to speak to someone you just walk over and make the universal "phone" gesture and mouth it at them.

Gilead

That sounds tough, sorry to have upset you. In terms of my colleague he is a massive trigger of my Misophonia, it's a crippling condition and because he is such a huge trigger I do hold alot of animosity towards him. The fact he's a belittling, condescending,argumentative bully does not help either. I hope your son gets some help.

Just to clarify (in case I'm jumped on 😂) I don't pop on my ear defenders when I'm teaching 😂😂 (much as I'm tempted some days😂😂)