Poor Workplace Indoor Air Quality Could Push Nearly Half Of Younger U.S. Workers To Quit

A growing generational divide is reshaping expectations for workplace health and wellbeing. According to the 2025 International Day of Clean Air Survey from Fellowes, a provider of commercial air quality management (AQM) systems, 45% of U.S. Millennial and Gen Z workers say they would consider leaving their employer over poor indoor air quality (IAQ), compared to just 18% of Baby Boomers.

Now in its fourth year, the annual survey finds that while concerns about IAQ remain high across the workforce, younger employees are driving a shift in its prioritization.

“In the U.S., Millennials and Gen Z are far more likely to worry about the health consequences of poor indoor air quality,” according to a press release. “More than two-thirds (68%) expressed concern about long-term effects — more than double the rate of Baby Boomers (28%). Their worries are not unfounded: 77% of Millennial and Gen Z workers report experiencing at least one workplace IAQ concern, compared with 60% of Baby Boomers.

“Clean air is widely recognized as essential to performance, with 94% of U.S. workers across all age groups saying it helps them do their best work. However, only 61% believe their employer is taking the right steps to ensure good IAQ. This perception gap could have real implications for a labor market increasingly dominated by younger workers. Millennials and Gen Z comprise 54% of the U.S. workforce, according to the U.S. Department of Labor (2024), and will continue to shape workforce norms in the years ahead.”

“Workplace expectations are evolving, with clean indoor air now firmly part of the equation,” Fellowes Director of Air Quality Management Jason Jones said. “While employees of all ages value a healthy work environment, younger generations are far more likely to view clean indoor air as an expectation in their workplace. As their numbers grow, this shift will only accelerate, making indoor air quality a vital factor in how companies attract and retain talent.”

The survey also highlights a growing demand for transparency. Overall, 78% of U.S. workers say it’s important that their employer share workplace IAQ data — a sentiment that is strongest among Millennials and Gen Z. When asked about the steps employers could take to increase their confidence in IAQ, workers showed a preference for installed air purification units (49%), followed by updates to HVAC systems (45%) and visible use of IAQ monitors (36%).

Additional findings from the 2025 Fellowes International Day of Clean Air Survey include:

• 68% of U.S. workers believe employers, not building owners, government agencies or employees themselves, bear responsibility for ensuring clean indoor air at work.
• Despite this, more than half (53%) of U.S. employees have taken personal steps to improve IAQ at work — including bringing in an air purifier, opening a window or adding plants specifically for the purpose of improving the air. That number is highest among Millennials and Gen Z (59%) and lowest among Baby Boomers (26%).

The 2025 Fellowes International Day of Clean Air Survey was conducted online by Atomik Research in July 2025 among 1,507 adults throughout the United States and Canada. The sample consisted of 1,006 full-time employees in the United States and 501 full-time employees in Canada, who work at least one full day per week indoors at their employer’s location. The margin of error is +/- 3 percentage points, with a confidence level of 95%.

To download the full survey report, visit https://fellowesblog.com/2025/09/02/racing-for-clean-air-survey-results-show-what-u-s-workers-expect/.