8 unique ways of forcing your colleagues to do their dishes

Dishes in a company…is an important issue. Your collaborators use mugs, plates, cutlery in the kitchen on a daily basis…but these little rascals don’t always wash these after using them. No, at times they just leave it in the sink, waiting for it to clean itself, through magic. The topic may seem anecdotal but in true fact, it’s often the Office Manager who is in charge of calling everyone to order. But at the end of the day, it’s tiring to remind the rules of etiquette to your colleagues, they aren’t children anymore. So, we are offering you to discover 8 unique ways of forcing your colleagues to do their dishes.

« Shaming » on the WhatsApp or Slack group

The principle is simple, and you certainly know this: you take the photo of the kitchen sink when it’s disgusting and filled with dirty dishes and then you send it on the company’s WhatsApp or Slack, it’s your choice. All this along with a rather aggressive message like “WHO DIDN’T DO THEIR DISHES AGAIN? PLEASE RESPECT THE ETIQUETTE RULES FOR GOD’S SAKE”. Well often, the guilty person doesn’t give up his/her name but makes amends discreetly, away from all looks. You won’t know who did it but at least the dishes will be done. 

Take away the kitchen

The technique is simply but super-efficient. Forbid accessing the kitchen. No kitchen=No dishes, no sink. And without dishes, no dirty dishes. Everyone may not approve of this. 

Use cardboard tableware

Instead of using glassware, which needs to be washed, only use cardboard tableware, which can be thrown after use. Actually no, forget about it as it’s not really environmentally friendly, it’s better leaving the sink dirty than making the planet so! 

Create a « shame board »

Each time you catch a colleague off-guard when he/she doesn’t do the dishes, jot down this person’s name in a little diary with +1. But mostly, don’t believe this person when he says, “don’t worry, I’ll do it later’. You weren’t born yesterday. At the end of the month, count the number of points for each of your collaborators, print the display with the name and photo of the dirtiest ones this month and hang it in the most visible area. You can be sure that shame is a guarantee.

Use dishes with names on it

The thing with dirty dishes is that one doesn’t really know who used it. To solve the issue, order customized dishes and allocate it to each one, with their pretty little names on them. This way, if a dish hasn’t been washed, you’ll know who the culprit is at once and get angry on this person. However careful with little minxes, who’ll use other people’s dishes. 

Hire an intern to make sure that everyone does their dishes before leaving the kitchen 

Most of the interns in your company don’t do anything interesting so how about using one of them for a task which is actually useful for the company and everyone: stay in the kitchen and make sure that everyone has done their dishes. If possible, hire a strong and intimidating intern, so that you make this approach, all the more efficient.

Install a surveillance camera

You are an Office Manager and you have a lot of work and you can’t keep spending time in the kitchen, making sure if everyone has done their dishes. To handle everything remotely, install a surveillance camera in the kitchen, where the sink is visible. Install a little screen on your desk, which helps you view things. This way, you’ll immediately know, who didn’t do their dishes. The best would be to also install a mic and a speaker, so that you can shout at your colleagues remotely, while staying at your desk. If your company doesn’t know what to do with its money, you can even pay a video surveillance company, to do the job in your place. 

Pay collaborators who report others

In some states of USA, citizens who report an offense or a crime are paid by the police. The Americans are way ahead in the game. So, ask your boss to unblock some dough, in order to give little bonuses to tattletales. Of course, you need to make sure that the person remains anonymous, otherwise the tattletales will come across repercussions. A pleasant atmosphere in sight for sure!

More informations here 50 unique ways of rewarding your collaborators and making them happy