What *exactly * is a persistent cough?

[NemoTeamo]

In my smallish office, in west Wales we are in a standoff between our staff.
We have a lady with a slight cough who is coming into work as usual and a chap who is complaining about her persistent cough to me.
Neither have underlying health conditions and both are in their early twenties.
I listened to the colleague complaining and actually timed the instances of coughing in one hour without the lady knowing . She coughed (and really it was more of a throat clear than anything) 8 times in one hour. Three of these occured directly as someone mentioned corona virus (psychosomatic?). And three of us also coughed at one of these mentions too.
She appears well and not flushed by temperature or anything.
What is a persistent cough? Does this count as one?!

[ProfessorSillyStuff]

Wow. It's simple. If your throat doesn't feel right, you can't go all day without coughing even once, just stay home. Duh. Gross.

[Milky77]

She could have hayfever

[GlendaSugarbeanIsJudgingYou]

Reading this thread is making me need to cough.