Growing resistance to off ice plants

The humble office plant might be on its way out, as government officials label them a safety hazard.

Staff at various government departments – including the Ministry of Justice, Ministry of Primary Industries, and Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) – have been discouraged from having plants in the office.

The reasons for the restriction vary, with some departments claiming plants were an earthquake hazard, while others didn’t want bugs around or couldn’t be bothered dealing with the mess.

MBIE – one of the larger ministries, with more than 3000 employees – said they didn’t monitor or manage plants but discouraged staff from having office plants when they first moved into a building. ‘‘This reduces the cost of maintenance and cleaning when they are knocked over or spilled,’’ a spokesman said.

However, a worker at MBIE said staff were told it was because people might be allergic to potting mix. The policy was ‘‘weird’’, the worker said.

The Ministry of Justice got rid of office plants following the Kaikoura earthquake in 2016, according to staff.

General manager of property and commercial Fraser Gibbs said pot plants in the national office were considered a health-andsafety hazard.

‘‘They can attract unwanted bugs and can easily be dislodged in an earthquake, creating a mess, a tripping hazard or potentially fall on someone,’’ he said.

The Ministry for Primary Industries had a similar reason for the ban. After the Kaikoura earthquake in 2016 it focused on removing equipment that could cause damage in the event of another shake, a spokeswoman said.

This included office plants, especially if they were over a certain height or on top of cupboards.

‘‘In determining what needed to be changed or fixed we considered factors such as height, weight and proximity (to people) and the likely impact should it fall,’’ the spokeswoman said.

‘‘We did have a specific focus on office plants as they were generally kept on top of cabinets and not secured, so even if small could still ‘fly’ due to the shaking.’’

A worker at MPI who spoke on the condition of anonymity said she was disappointed she couldn’t have a ‘‘cute pot plant’’ on her desk.

Instead, she and a group of her colleagues bought a small Baby’s Tears plant, dubbed Joan of Arc, to decorate the office outside the eyes of the health-and-safety officer.

A Treasury spokesman said it had a contracted plant provider that provides and cares for feature plants on every floor.

‘‘Personal plants are discouraged,’’ he said, ‘‘but we do not have ‘plant police’.’’

This is because personal plants may carry disease or not be as well maintained as the ones provided by the contracted provider, he said.

But not all bureaucrats toil in lifeless offices, with the Ministry of Health, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Inland Revenue all allowing plants.