Do you shiver while you work? A study by a pair of Dutch scientists has made it official: the typical office air conditioner is way too cold for women. The scientists at Maastricht University found most thermostats were set according to 1960s guidelines that were decided based on the resting metabolic rate of a 40-year-old man. As the typical woman is smaller, has more body fat and a slower metabolic rate, she’s also a lot colder. The researchers tested young women performing light office work and found their optimum temperature was 77F. Based on the 1960s study, the average office thermostat was set to 72F. The scientists suggested 75F as a happy temperature medium. The Royal Gazette took to the streets of Hamilton to find out whether Bermuda’s women agreed with the study, and to find out how they tolerated the cold.

“I take a blanket, a jacket and a sweater to work because it’s so cold. I just took my sweater off to come outside,” said Jennifer Wellman, a business analyst from St George’s. “We take our breaks when we get too cold just to go outside and get a little warmer. We go for a little 15-minute walk, sometimes drink a cup of tea.”

Her boss was sympathetic to her plight, the 32-year-old said.

“We’ve actually told our employer that we’ve felt cold and one day they turned it up for us. I’ve never seen any of the men in the office really cold but that’s usually because they dress in long sleeves, long pants and a tie so they feel quite comfortable when they go to work.”

Twenty-three-year-old Jasmine Smith said she struggled to stay warm at the Smoke Shop.

“I’m cold every single day at work,” the Pembroke resident said. “To stay warm I usually put on my sweattop or sweater. Once I have that on I end up getting hot again so I take it back off. [Washington Mall] controls the thermostat in the entire building so the only option is to put on a sweater or go outside if it gets unbearable.”

Sales associate Ashleigh Lowe said she would love it if the thermostat was raised at her job.

“I’m always cold when I’m at work that’s why I have this jacket on right now,” said the 29-year-old Warwick resident. “Sometimes I step outside or go for a walk if I start to get too cold. I know other co-workers have mentioned that it’s too cold in the shop but the mall has to be air-conditioned so it doesn’t change. My male co-worker said that he gets cold all the time but he moves around so it doesn’t bother him as much.”

Roseitta Livingston, of Devonshire, said: “I would say working in the air conditioning all day is good, and not good, because some days it’s so cold that you have to put on a sweater and then you go outside and it’s warm. You come back in again and you can catch a cold.”

The 45-year-old security officer said it was far easier for men to stay comfortable.

“Men wear suits and long sleeves to work while women wear blouses without undershirts so why wouldn’t they be cold? I think offices and workplaces should accommodate both men and women or find a happy medium.”

Alley Daniel of Paget said: “I do get cold at work a lot. I work in an office and we have thermostats. It’s an open-plan office so I have to just deal with whatever temperature they set it to. But then again I just bring in an extra jersey if I get cold.”

Added the 37-year-old architect: “I could potentially get up and go for a walk outside if I feel too cold but when you’re working and you have deadlines to meet you can’t just get up and go for a little walk outside. “It’s probably really only the ladies that get cold in my office.”