Are you a perpetrator of workplace printer abuse?

(Credit: CNET Networks)

According to a new survey released today, about 60 percent of the Canadian workforce is making personal use of their office printer.

The survey, conducted by Angus Reid Strategies for Samsung Electronics revealed that a large majority of Canadians who work in offices with high volume laser printers aren't using them for memos and work-related e-mails, but rather for personal letters, color photos, and even *gasp* resumes! The study breaks down the percentage of people that print out random documents:

Percentage of people that print personal documents
(Percentage (out of 100 percent) of people surveyed)

Print maps and directions

59% 

Print receipts and bill payment confirmations

40% 

Print personal e-mails

40% 

Print color photos

20% 

Print resumes

1% 

Source: Samsung Electronics Canada

I think it's safe to assume that the reason for all this work-printer abuse is because of the consensus that printers are simply too expensive to maintain. After all, why pay for an expensive toner cartridge or inkjet when your company is willing to foot the bill?

Well, for starters, using the company printer for your own personal needs is an unethical use of work supplies. I'm certainly not playing moral police here, and I've definitely used the office printer to print a few e-mails and online articles, but there's simply no reason to print personal photos and resumes at work, namely because printers today are wildly affordable, even for homes on a strict budget.

The price for print cartridges is also much lower than it's ever been. Considering the average cost of paper and inks (that now come in XL capacities), today's standard photo print only costs between $0.25 to $0.35 to print. If you print out an inordinate amount (you know how much is too much) of documents on the company dime, it's time to consider a printer for the home--you might be surprised at the low price of workplace integrity.

[Wes#1]

If these are networked printers (and most company printers are), it would be very easy for the companies to track what was printed and by whom.

[One-Eared Gundark]

While tracking printer usage is possible with networked printers, the IT department has much better things to do with their time. Adults should be responsible enough to refrain from using company printers for personal use. In the event that someone is grossly violating the policy, then the user should have printer usage tracked.
With b/w lasers starting under $100 these days - and the ability to get 20 cent color photo prints at many local stores - I don't know why anyone with a home PC would feel compelled to use company equipment for personal use.

[solitare_pax]

What you are overlooking is that most of these 'affordable' printers are pieces of junk - even though you may have high ratings for them during your brief reviews, I have yet to see a review on printers after a year of service. By then, most have been replaced by the next new thing, but the fact is, you get what you pay for - and people looking for a bargain will take the cheapest thing they can find. I had a relative who had a Kodak photo printer they used everywhere on the road in their RV - until it died. They called up tech support, since it was under warranty, and the tech support person told them it was only supposed to have a life-span of 99 photos or so. One or the other might have been referring to the ink, but the problem wasn't the ink, it was that the printer wouldn't work.

[ayoung45]

The point you are making is that people shouldn't use their company printers because it is very cheap to get a printer for home usage, but even if printers and ink/toner are MORE expensive and costly for the home owner, does that make it right to use the company printer for personal use??

I belive the ethical answer is still no.

[solitare_pax]

I do not disagree with the fact that using the office printer for personal use is _wrong_. I disagree with the stated assumption in the article that personal home printers are "wildly affordable" since many of those types will stop working reliably in a matter of months of use, or they will race through ink in no time flat - forcing some people to turn to the office printer, and generating more landfill with non-functioning printers.

[wlau]

Don't forget how many IT departments actually allow employees to attach a local personal-owned printer to company owned computer or network -- most do not. This article is very bias to say the least. I lost count of times I printed work related documents, emails, airline boarding passes and etc at home using my personal printer. Using work printer is more about convenience than cost in most cases, just look at the stuff people print. You don't see a lot of people print receipe, tax reutrns or shopping list. In modern technological driven society, things like printer, internet access, telephone are standard office benefits no different than water, tea and coffee. Countless of studies have shown taking away these "perks" greatly reduce work place productivity. As employees, we should all do this with moderation - don't abuse it. These perks are what keeps employee in the office longer and longer, same reason why companies like Google offer even more perks including catered meals.

If companies want to save money on printing cost, they should look else where. I've lost count of times my coworker print a 300-page technical spec in color mode. I never understood those people. How do you "search" a 300-page paper document??? I'd rather keeping it in PDF form. I only print those few pages I need, not the entire document.