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Every fifth Dane has a colleague that stinks of sweat
Lucie Rychla
April 5th, 2016
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This article is more than 8 years old.
Most people are too shy to talk about it directly
Every fifth Dane has a colleague who smells of sweat or other bad body odours, reveals a new survey carried out by YouGov for Metroxpress.
Majken Lorelei Matzau, an organisational psychologist, believes this issue may negatively affect work co-operation and lead to back-talking.
“If someone has a noticeable body odour, it unconsciously affects our impression of the person and changes our relationship to him or her,” Matzau told Metroxpress.
“Some people may, for instance, avoid co-operation with the odourly colleague.”
May lead to bullying
Eva Gemzøe Mikkelsen, an organisational psychologist at consultancy firm CRECEA, says repeated and persistent negative comments about a colleague who smells can be viewed as an expression of bullying.
Meanwhile, only 14 percent of those interviewed said they would tell their colleague directly that he or she smells of sweat.
“It is a sensitive topic to talk about,” admitted Matzau.
“But not doing so is like letting a colleague walk around with a big piece of spinach between their teeth without saying anything.”
Some 62 percent of Danes think their boss should talk to the employee about it.
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