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AN INVENTORY OF THE UNDERVALUED The spaces & those who maintain our buildings

JULIA LANDREAU

MASTER’S IN ARCHITECTURE, 2026

AN INVENTORY OF THE UNDERVALUED

Julia Landreau Graduation project Master’s in Architecture Mentor: Valentina Fantini Committee members: Laura van Santen, Giulio Margheri Academy of Architecture, Amsterdam, 2025–2026

Disclamer - This publication was produced as part of a graduation project in architecture and takes a declared critical position toward current architectural practice and building regulations. - It does not constitute legal advice, nor does it claim to represent the disciplines of sociology, labor law, or urban studies. - Research is based on site visits, interviews, and publicly available documentation conducted between 2025 & 2026. Access to certain buildings and spaces was limited by their ownership and management structures. - The case studies of the shown buildings does not represent the official position of the Architects or parties involved in their making. - Spatial figures and architectural drawings are indicative and based on available documentation and testimony. They illustrate systemic patterns rather than legally precise measurements. - The author acknowledges that the experiences of building caretakers are diverse and cannot be fully captured through architectural analysis alone. This publication does not speak on behalf of the workers it documents. - Legal texts are reproduced in extract form for the purposes of illustration and critique only. - All interviews were conducted with the consent of participants, whose views are their own and do not represent the official positions of their employers. - This publication does not claim that any building or institution cited is in breach of applicable regulations. It raises questions about the adequacy of those regulations as a framework for spatial justice.

INTRODUCTION GLOSSARY WORKER TYPOLOGIES OF SPATIAL MARGINALISATION THE ROOMS INVENTORY REGULATIONS & LAW CERTIFICATIONS CASE STUDY: THE OFFICE BUILDING BIBLIOGRAPHY

08 10 12 34 58 70 80 86 98

INTRODUCTION A building is not finished once construction is over; maintaining it at the same standards of operation requires constant effort. Surprisingly, this tireless back-end work-which is fundamental to buildings and could be said to enable them to remain - is largely absent in architectural documentation and discourse. It’s implicitly part of how a building works, but does not feature in the official narrative. This publication is an effort to take up where the built world leaves off; it picks up from the void, charting this absence through the workers, the places in which they are assigned to labour, the regulations that govern these spaces, and the systems of measurement that claim to rate a building’s quality. Firstly, the chapter on workers describes the people responsible for maintaining a building. It catalogues eleven building operations job categories, ranging from housekeepers and plumbers to technicians, as well as front-of-house service staff. It then continues with the analysis of three typologies and the space dedicated to their caretakers. The research provides details on how the law organises building space-how, for instance, countries like the Netherlands, the UK, and other European countries. It reveals how building codes deem the “ancillary spaces,” offering few protections to their occupants. The chapter also examines the more subtle regulation offered by the physical configuration of buildings themselves, showing how architectural choices can implicitly disadvantage certain users without formal law or rule. Finally, the research investigates the rating and certification schemes-such as BREEAM, WELL, and NABERS-that govern the evaluation of quality in the real estate market. The findings reveal how these programs prioritise design criteria over workers’ well-being, allowing developers to secure high-profile certificates while neglecting to consider how a building’s operational staff are housed.

In a section dedicated to a more granular analysis, the facilities allocated to maintenance workers in each of the building types are catalogued, including storage areas, private offices, break rooms, locker rooms, and security spaces, noting the content and physical conditions of these areas. The case study-a 40 Leadenhall in the city of London-examines in detail the amount of space dedicated to caretaker amenities in relation to the building’s total footprint, occupant numbers, and use over time. This study is informed by in-depth public documents generated in 2025-2026. All these chapters follow one thread, and track a single condition from the people who do the work, to where that work happens, to how the law sees it, to how the industry measures it. Are we really evaluating building spaces the right way if we care about justice and proper treatment for everyone working inside?

GLOSSARY

CORE TERMS Maintenance

The human act of holding something in time through touch and care; not a passive or automatic process but an active management of change that allows for adjustment, modification, and continuation rather than freezing something in a fixed state.

Repair

The act of restoring something that has degraded or broken, countering the modern tendency to replace rather than mend.

Care

The act of providing attention towards somthing. It describes the disposition that should govern the relationship between designer, building, and the people who inhabit and maintain it.

Upkeep

The ongoing regime of cleaning, adjusting, and replacing that a building immediately enters upon completion, yet which remains largely unacknowledged in architectural discourse despite being the condition that sustains any built environment.

Post-occupancy

The phase after handover when a building is never finished but constantly monitored, adjusted, and repaired, during which the architect is rarely involved and spatial decisions are no longer controlled by the people who designed them.

Invisible labor

The essential work of maintenance, cleaning, and repair that is everywhere present yet socially invisible, carried out by workers who are formally and financially insiders but treated like outsiders in the very buildings they sustain.

Reproductive labor

The recurring, often uncredited work of maintaining conditions so that primary functions can continue, analogous to the domestic and care labour that keeps a household or institution operational without being recognised as productive in its own right.

SPATIAL TERMS Spatial dignity

The recognition that every worker has an essential right to a workspace that reflects their equal worth as a human being, regardless of their role or status within a building’s hierarchy.

Circulation dignity

The quality of movement available to workers within a building and that every worker can move through via routes that are not defined by their role’s invisibility.

Primary workspace

A space classified by regulations as requiring strong expectations of daylight and ventilation, typically office, classroom, or control room environments designed around the building’s core revenue-generating function.

Ancillary space

A support or back-of-house space, subject to weak regulatory requirements, categorised on the assumption that occupants spend only short, intermittent periods there.

Back-of-house

The hidden operational zones of a building, where both the infrastructure and the people are deliberately kept out of sight, rendering both space and worker invisible.

Front-of-house

The representational, publicly visible spaces of a building, designed to project a certain image.

Heterotopia of deviation

(Foucault) Following Foucault’s concept, a space designed to contain what does not conform to the norm, where architecture operates through restriction and concealment to regulate presence, visibility, and access through design.

Architectural exclusion

(Schindler) The use of spatial design decisions to systematically exclude or marginalise certain groups.

Service architecture

The spatial typology dedicated to the operational sustaining of a building, which is classified as non-representational and nonrevenue-generating and therefore consistently allocated at the lowest position in the building hierarchy.

LABOR TERMS Caretaker

The person who, through daily physical labour, holds a building in time. The operational workforce responsible for monitoring, adjusting, repairing, and cleaning a building post-occupancy; the one who inhabits it most permanently.

Domestic science

The codified knowledge of cleaning, maintenance, and household management historically associated with feminised and racialised labour, dismissed as unskilled despite requiring real expertise.

Racial tasks

(Wingfield & Skeete) The disproportionate assignment of physically demanding, lowstatus, or dirty maintenance work to racialised workers, a pattern that reinforces the social invisibility of maintenance labour by linking it to bodies already marginalised within institutional hierarchies.

Temporal invisibility

The condition of workers whose presence is most required when the building is least observed (at night, on weekends, during shift changes) making their labour structurally invisible to those who occupy the building during standard office hours.

Deferred maintenance

The deliberate or negligent postponement of upkeep and repair that produces accelerated material decay and cultural obsolescence, reflecting the broader architectural tendency to design without accounting for the ongoing labour that a building requires from the moment of handover.

CERTIFICATIONS BREEAM

A widely used environmental assessment and certification method that evaluates the sustainability performance of buildings across categories including energy, water, materials, and ecology.

WELL

A building certification standard focused on the health and wellbeing of occupants, assessing factors such as air quality, lighting, thermal comfort, and access to fitness and nutrition.

NABERS

A rating system that measures the operational environmental performance of buildings, particularly energy and water efficiency, based on actual metered data rather than design intent.

GRESB

A global benchmark that assesses the environmental, social, and governance performance of real estate portfolios and infrastructure assets for institutional investors.

ESG

A framework for evaluating organisations and assets across three dimensions, Environmental impact, Social responsibility, and Governance, used by investors to assess sustainability and ethical risk.

WiredScore

An international certification that rates a building’s digital connectivity infrastructure, assessing the resilience, speed, and reliability of its telecommunications systems.

RI&E

(Risico Inventarisatie & Evaluatie) The Dutch statutory risk inventory and evaluation framework that employers must use to assess workplace health and safety conditions,

ECONOMIC / INSTITUTIONAL TERMS OPEX

Operational expenditure covering the ongoing costs of running and maintaining a building after construction, including salaries, cleaning contracts, and repair budgets; typically treated as a cost to be minimised rather than recognised as the investment that protects asset value.

Post-occupancy

evaluation

(POE) A systematic assessment of how a building performs in use after handover, the very phase at which the architect is rarely present and at which the gap between the idealised design and the lived reality of maintenance, use, and decay becomes most visible.

Fit-out

The tenant-driven interior transformation of a building’s open floor plates into specific working environments.

Asset value preservation

The ongoing process of maintaining a building’s physical condition, operational performance, and market positioning in order to protect and sustain its long-term economic value for owners and investors.

Choice architecture

(Thaler & Sunstein) The design of environments that nudge behaviour through spatial arrangement and default options; effectively removing real choice through design.

WORKERS This chapter brings together the full range of jobs that sustain a building in its day-to-day operation. It covers eleven categories of work, from cleaning and hygiene to smart building technology, from catering to sustainability, from security to the emerging roles that buildings are only beginning to formalise. A short definition describes what each work involves, and the working hours are mapped and overlapped to emphasise the worker’s presence within a building. The list is the result of extensive research into building operations, facilities management practice and regulatory frameworks. It attempts to be as comprehensive as possible, covering both traditional roles that have been around for many years and the newer disciplines that are reshaping how buildings are managed and cared for. It is, however, not exhaustive. Buildings differ enormously in scale, typology, ownership and use, and not every role listed here will be present in every building. For example, a small office building may employ a single facilities manager and a part-time cleaning operative; a large mixed-use tower may require dozens of specialists across every category, and some roles may be combined into one position, others contracted out to external providers and therefore less visible within the building’s own staffing structure. Certain roles are specific to particular institutions and may not be present in all building typologies. Furthermore, some jobs may also adopt different titles in different organisations. This chapter does not claim to be a complete picture, but instead to make visible a layer of work that is too often absent from architectural briefs, building programmes and public conversation.

CLEANING & HYGIENE Cleaning Operative

Deep-clean technician

24h00 Maintains the cleanliness of all shared and private spaces within a building, ensuring every area meets hygiene standards for the people who use it.

24h00

6h00

18h00

Carries out intensive cleaning of areas that daily cleaning cannot address, targeting surfaces, systems and spaces that require periodic specialist treatment.

12h00

Washroom attendant

Waste operative

24h00 Maintains the cleanliness and restocking of all bathroom and sanitary facilities throughout the day, carrying out checks and replenishment on a continuous basis.

24h00

6h00

18h00

12h00

Recycling coordinator

Collects and removes waste from all areas of the building, managing the segregation of general, recyclable and hazardous materials according to building and environmental policy.

12h00

Pest control technician

24h00

6h00

18h00

12h00

24h00

6h00

18h00

12h00

Carries out scheduled prevention treatments and responds to infestations across the building, working to agreed protocols and compliance requirements.

on call 6h00

18h00

12h00

Window cleaner

Cleans and maintains all interior and exterior glazed surfaces of a building, working from rope access equipment, cradles or platforms on a scheduled programme.

6h00

18h00

24h00 Oversees the segregation and processing of recyclable materials across the building, monitoring waste streams and maintaining records for sustainability and regulatory reporting.

6h00

18h00

SECURITY & ACCESS Security officer

CCTV operator

24h00 Patrols the building, manages access control points and responds to security incidents and alarms across all areas of the site.

24h00

6h00

18h00

Monitors camera feeds from a dedicated control room, reviewing footage and logging incidents in accordance with the building’s security procedures.

12h00

Door supervisor

Control room operator

24h00 Manages the main entrance of the building, verifying visitor identity and controlling access between public and private areas of the site.

24h00

6h00

18h00

Coordinates security operations from a central control room, managing alarm systems, access control events and incident records across the building.

6h00

18h00

12h00

Parking enforcement officer

Visitor screening officer

24h00 Manages access and compliance within the building’s car park, monitoring usage and enforcing parking policy across the site.

6h00

18h00

24h00

6h00

18h00

12h00

Verifies the identity of all arriving visitors, managing the sign-in process and access authorisation at the building entrance.

6h00

18h00

12h00

Shift Pattern Various 8h shift Available on request

on call

MEP (MECHANICAL, ELECTRICAL & PLUMBING) Mechanical engineer

Electrical engineer

24h00 Maintains and repairs all mechanical systems within a building, including heating, ventilation, air conditioning and associated plant room equipment.

24h00

6h00

18h00

Maintains all low voltage electrical systems throughout the building, including distribution boards, wiring, lighting installations and power infrastructure.

12h00

Plumber

HVAC technician

24h00 Maintains all pipework, sanitary systems and water infrastructure across the building, carrying out both reactive repairs and planned installation works.

24h00

6h00

18h00

12h00

BMS operator

Maintains and services heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems, carrying out inspections, adjustments and repairs to keep systems operating within specification.

12h00

Fire system engineer

24h00

6h00

18h00

Maintains all fire detection and suppression infrastructure, carrying out statutory testing and inspections in accordance with fire safety legislation.

on call 6h00

18h00

12h00

Lift engineer

Water treatment technician

24h00 Services and inspects all lifts and escalators within the building, carrying out statutory safety tests and responding to breakdowns and entrapments.

6h00

18h00

24h00 Monitors all mechanical and electrical plant data through the building management system, responding to alarms and performance issues from a dedicated control room.

6h00

18h00

24h00

on call 6h00

18h00

12h00

Monitors and chemically treats the building’s water systems in accordance with legionella control and water quality regulations.

on call 6h00

18h00

12h00

Gas engineer

Generator engineer

24h00 Services and maintains all gas-fired equipment including boilers and heating systems, operating under Gas Safe registration requirements

24h00

6h00

18h00

12h00

Maintains standby power generation equipment, carrying out regular load tests and inspections in line with statutory and contractual requirements.

6h00

18h00

12h00

Shift Pattern Various 8h shift Available on request

on call

FRONT OF HOUSE & GUEST SERVICES Receptionist

Concierge

24h00 Manages the front desk of the building, coordinating visitor arrivals, answering enquiries and administering access and sign-in procedures.

24h00

6h00

18h00

Responds to requests from building occupants and visitors, managing bookings, arrangements and day-to-day needs throughout the working day.

12h00

Post room operative

Helpdesk coordinator

24h00 Receives, sorts and distributes all incoming mail and parcels, and coordinates outgoing post and courier collections across the building.

24h00

6h00

18h00

12h00

24h00

6h00

18h00

12h00

Receives and logs all facilities requests from building occupants, assigning tasks to the relevant teams and tracking completion through the management system.

6h00

18h00

12h00

Meeting room coordinator

Manages the booking, preparation and technical setup of all meeting and conference spaces across the building.

6h00

18h00

CATERING & HOSPITALITY Head chef

Sous chef

24h00 Leads kitchen operations including menu planning, food preparation, service delivery and food safety compliance, managing the kitchen team throughout.

24h00

6h00

18h00

Supports the head chef across all kitchen operations, taking responsibility for service in their absence and overseeing junior kitchen staff.

12h00

Catering assistant

Barista / beverage host

24h00 Assists with food preparation, service and kitchen cleaning across all catering outlets throughout each service period.

24h00

6h00

18h00

Operates the building’s coffee and drinks provision, managing the counter, equipment and stock levels throughout the day.

6h00

18h00

12h00

Hospitality coordinator

Kitchen porter

24h00 Plans and delivers catering for meetings, events and boardroom functions, managing setup, service and clear-down for each request.

6h00

18h00

24h00

6h00

18h00

12h00

Maintains the cleanliness of kitchen equipment, surfaces and utensils, managing warewashing and supporting the kitchen team with preparation tasks.

6h00

18h00

12h00

Shift Pattern Various 8h shift Available on request

on call

GENERAL MAINTENANCE FABRIC General maintenance tech

Painter & decorator

24h00 Carries out reactive and planned maintenance tasks across the building fabric, responding to faults and requests from occupants and the facilities team.

24h00

6h00

18h00

12h00

Joiner / carpenter

Maintains the decorative condition of internal surfaces, carrying out scheduled redecoration programmes and responding to damage and wear across the building.

12h00

Grounds maintenance worker

24h00 Repairs and installs timber elements including doors, frames, furniture and fitted joinery throughout the building.

24h00

6h00

18h00

Maintains all external landscaping, planting, pathways and hard surfaces surrounding the building on a seasonal programme.

6h00

18h00

12h00

Facade access technician

Handyperson

24h00 Inspects and maintains the external envelope of the building from rope access equipment or cradles, carrying out cleaning, repairs and condition surveys.

6h00

18h00

24h00

6h00

18h00

12h00

Responds to minor reactive tasks across the building including small repairs, basic installations and dayto-day maintenance requests.

6h00

18h00

12h00

SUSTAINABILITY & ENVIRONMENT Sustainability manager

Energy manager

24h00 Develops and manages the building’s sustainability strategy, overseeing progress toward environmental targets and producing ESG reporting for owners and regulators.

24h00

6h00

18h00

Monitors the building’s energy consumption across all systems, managing metering, billing and the identification of reduction opportunities.

12h00

Carbon analyst

EV charging coordinator

24h00 Measures and reports the building’s carbon emissions across all operational scopes, producing documentation for regulatory compliance and internal reporting.

24h00

6h00

18h00

Manages the operation and billing of electric vehicle charging infrastructure across the building’s parking provision, monitoring usage and coordinating fault responses.

6h00

18h00

12h00

Solar / renewable tech

Indoor air quality specialist

24h00 Maintains photovoltaic panels, inverters and battery storage systems, carrying out scheduled performance checks and responding to technical faults.

6h00

18h00

24h00

6h00

18h00

12h00

Monitors air quality conditions throughout the building using sensor networks, auditing ventilation performance and producing reports on compliance and occupant conditions.

6h00

18h00

12h00

Shift Pattern Various 8h shift Available on request

on call

HEALTH, SAFETY & COMPLIANCE Health & safety manager

Fire safety officer

24h00 Develops and enforces the building’s health and safety policy, conducting risk assessments, audits and training across all departments and contractor activities.

24h00

6h00

18h00

Manages fire risk assessments, evacuation planning and the statutory testing programme for all fire safety systems and equipment across the building.

12h00

First aider / occ. nurse

Compliance manager

24h00 Provides on-site medical response to injuries and health incidents, managing the building’s first aid provision and welfare facilities.

6h00

18h00

24h00

6h00

18h00

12h00

Manages the building’s statutory certificates, inspection records and audit cycles, ensuring all regulatory requirements are met and documented.

6h00

18h00

12h00

SMART BUILDING & TECHNOLOGY Smart building engineer

AV & IT support tech

24h00 Manages IoT sensors, control systems and connected building infrastructure, carrying out remote monitoring and on-site intervention to maintain system performance.

24h00

6h00

18h00

Maintains audio-visual and IT infrastructure across the building, setting up equipment for meetings and responding to technical faults from occupants.

12h00

Data centre technician

Digital twin operator

24h00 Maintains server rooms and communications infrastructure, monitoring system uptime and responding to faults and critical failures.

6h00

18h00

24h00

6h00

18h00

12h00

Manages and updates the live threedimensional digital model of the building, integrating real-time data feeds to support facilities management and performance monitoring.

6h00

18h00

12h00

Occupancy data analyst

24h00 Analyses space utilisation data across the building, producing reports on usage patterns to inform space planning, energy management and building strategy.

6h00

18h00

12h00

Shift Pattern Various 8h shift Available on request

on call

FACILITIES MANAGEMENT & ADMIN Facilities manager

Assistant FM

24h00 Holds overall responsibility for the operational management of the building, coordinating all service lines, contractors and budgets across every department.

24h00

6h00

18h00

Supports the facilities manager across day-today building operations, coordinating reactive tasks, managing supplier relationships and ensuring continuity of service.

12h00

FM helpdesk analyst

Planned maintenance planner

24h00 Receives and logs all facilities requests from building occupants, assigning tasks to the appropriate teams and tracking completion through the management system.

24h00

6h00

18h00

Schedules all preventive maintenance activity across the building’s systems and fabric, ensuring statutory and contractual obligations are met on time.

6h00

18h00

12h00

Space planner

Move coordinator

24h00 Manages the allocation and configuration of space within the building, coordinating moves and maintaining accurate floor plan records.

6h00

18h00

24h00

6h00

18h00

12h00

Plans and delivers office relocations and space reconfigurations, coordinating logistics and contractors across the building.

6h00

18h00

12h00

SPECIALIST & EMERGING ROLES Wellness coordinator

Active travel officer

24h00 Manages the building’s occupant wellbeing programme, coordinating physical and mental health initiatives, events and support resources.

24h00

6h00

18h00

Manages sustainable and active travel provision for building occupants, overseeing cycling infrastructure, storage facilities and travel incentive programmes.

12h00

Occupant experience manager

Community engagement manager

24h00 Manages the overall service experience across the building, gathering occupant feedback, setting standards and coordinating improvements across all departments.

24h00

6h00

18h00

12h00

6h00

18h00

Manages relationships between the building and its surrounding neighbourhood, coordinating local events, partnerships and communications.

6h00

18h00

12h00

Shift Pattern Various 8h shift Available on request

on call

ESTIMATE SHIFT SCHEDULE

12h

16h

20h

24h

SECURITY & ACCESS Security officer

24h

CCTV operator

24h

Control room operator

24h

Door supervisor

12h

Visitor screening officer

11h

Parking enforcement

12h

MEP BMS operator

24h

Data centre technicien

24h

Mechanical engineer

10h

Electrical engineer

10h

HVAC technician

10h

Plumber

Fire system engineer

Gas engineer

Lift engineer

Water treatment tech

Generator engineer

CLEANING & HYGIENE Washroom attendant

12h

Deep-clean technician

Cleaning operative

Window cleaner

Waste operative

Recycling coordinator

FRONT OF HOUSE & GUEST SERVICES Concierge

13h

Helpdesk coordinator

12h

Receptionist

11h

Meeting room coordinator

11h

Post room operative

CATERING & HOSPITALITY Hospitality coordinator

10h

Head chef

Sous chef

Barista / beverage host

10h

Catering assistant

Kitchen porter

12h

16h

20h

24h

GENERAL MAINTENANCE General maintenance tech

Painter & decorator

Joiner / carpenter

Facade access technician

Grounds maintenance

Handyperson

SUSTAINABILITY Solar / renewable tech

Energy manager

Sustainability manager

8.5h

EV charging coordinator

Carbon analyst

8.5h

Indoor air quality spec.

HEALTH, SAFETY & COMPLIANCE First aider / occ. nurse

Fire safety officer

Health & safety manager

Compliance manager

8.5h

FACILITIES MANAGEMENT 12h

FM helpdesk analyst Move coordinator

11h

Facilities manager

10.5h

Assistant FM

9.5h

Planned maint. planner

Space planner

8.5h

SMART BUILDING & TECH AV & IT support tech

11h

Smart building engineer

Digital twin operator

8.5h

Occupancy data analyst

8.5h

SPECIALIST & EMERGING ROLES Occupant experience mgr

10h

Community engagement mgr

Wellness coordinator

Active travel officer

8.5h

DEPARTMENT OVERLAP ACROSS 24 HOURS

SECURITY & ACCESS MEP CLEANING & HYGIENE FRONT OF HOUSE & GUEST SERVICES CATERING & HOSPITALITY SUSTAINABILITY GENERAL MAINTENANCE HEALTH, SAFETY & COMPLIANCE FACILITIES MANAGEMENT SMART BUILDING & TECH SPECIALIST & EMERGING ROLES

peak 11 11

9 8 6 5 4 3

12h

24h

Association of Facilities Managers. (2026). Operational Frameworks and Facility Guidelines. AFM Registry, London, UK. Arboportaal. (2026). Arbeidsomstandigheden en Praktische Richtlijnen voor de Werkplek. Ministerie van Sociale Zaken en Werkgelegenheid, The Hague, Netherlands. British Hospitality Association. (2026). Workforce Guidance and Hospitality Operations Standard. BHA Archives, London, UK. Building Engineering Services Association. (2026). BESA Technical Specifications for Building Engineering Services. BESA Publications, London, UK. Building Research Establishment. (2026). BREEAM Technical Standards and Assessor Guidance Manual. BRE Global, Watford, UK. Centraal Bureau voor de Statistiek. (2026). Arbeidsmarkt, Werktijden en Werkgelegenheid Statistieken. CBS, Heerlen/Den Haag, Netherlands. Centre for the Protection of National Infrastructure. (2026). Physical Security and Infrastructure Protection Criteria. CPNI Protective Security Archives, London, UK. Chartered Institution of Building Services Engineers. (2026). CIBSE Guide M: Maintenance Engineering and Management. CIBSE, London, UK. CoreNet Global. (2026). Corporate Real Estate and Workplace Research Syntheses. CoreNet Global Knowledge Center, Atlanta, USA. Eurofound. (2026). European Working Conditions Survey (EWCS): Sectorby-Sector Shift Pattern Analysis. European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions, Dublin, Ireland. Federatie Nederlandse Vakbeweging. (2026). Collectieve Arbeidsovereenkomsten (CAO) voor Schoonmaak-, Beveiligings- en Cateringpersoneel. FNV, Utrecht, Netherlands. Foodservice Consultants Society International. (2026). FCSI Professional Standard Design and Consulting Guidelines. FCSI Global, Architectural Press. Global Real Estate Sustainability Benchmark. (2026). GRESB Real Estate Assessment Standard. GRESB BV, Amsterdam, Netherlands. Institute of Workplace and Facilities Management. (2026). IWFM Professional Standards, Role Definitions, and Workforce Surveys. IWFM, Bishop’s Stortford, UK.

International Labour Organization. (2026). Working Time Databases, Shift Patterns, and Sectoral Labour Reports. ILO Information System, Geneva, Switzerland. Nationaal Instituut voor Budgetvoorlichting. (2026). Nibud Budgethandboek: Financiële Normen en Huishoudelijke Referenties. Nibud, Utrecht, Netherlands. Rijksdienst voor Ondernemend Nederland. (2026). Duurzaamheid, Energieprestatie (BENG) en Milieuregelgeving voor Gebouwen. RVO, Utrecht, Netherlands. Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors. (2026). RICS Professional Guidance Notes: Facilities Management Global Practice. RICS Parliament Square, London, UK. SFG20. (2026). The Standard Maintenance Specification for Building Engineering Services. BESA Publications, Penrith, UK. Sociaal-Economische Raad. (2026). Overzicht van Collectieve Arbeidsovereenkomsten en Arbeidsmarktvraagstukken. SER, The Hague, Netherlands. Stichting CAO Bouw & Infra. (2026). Collectieve Arbeidsovereenkomst voor de Bouw & Infra. CAO-Bouw, Harderwijk, Netherlands. Security Industry Authority. (2026). SIA Licensing Standards, Role Criteria, and Private Security Regulations. SIA, London, UK. U.S. Green Building Council. (2026). LEED v4.1 Reference Guide for Building Design and Construction. USGBC, Washington DC, USA.

TYPOLOGIES OF SPATIAL MARGINALISATION Space is not neutral. Buildings are often designed around their primary function, leaving what is labelled “secondary” overlooked and rendered invisible. Caretakers may be formal and financial insiders yet still be treated like outsiders, as the absence of basic spaces (for instance, to take a break) forces them into hidden or improvised areas. This chapter maps the condition across three building typologies: the modern office tower, the educational institution, and the domestic domain. Each category has been taken from different contexts and represents different scales. The examples try to shed light on the system that places caretakers in the leftover spaces. The floor plan extract of each building is drawn with the caretaker space filled in red. In every case, the rooms reserved for the people who maintain the building are located in the basement, or at the back, or in a space that does not count toward the exploitable area of the floor plan. They have little to no daylight, are small and are adjacent to storage rooms, plant rooms, and service corridors. The drawings show the caretaker spaces relative to the total building area, indicating how much space is allocated to those who maintain it. Furthermore, it also represents the disparity between the area provided and the number of people it is expected to serve. The spatial analysis presented in this chapter is based on publicly available architectural drawings, published research, and firsthand testimony. In some cases, exact dimensions might be slightly inaccurate. The drawings are indicative and intended to illustrate systemic spatial patterns. The author acknowledges that conditions vary across buildings and institutions, and that this selection does not claim to be exhaustive.

OFFICE TOWER EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTION DOMESTIC DOMAIN SUMMARY OF SPATIAL INDICATOR

OFFICE TOWER

-1 BASEMENT -2 BASEMENT

location dedicated space for caretakers

In the contemporary office tower, caretaker spaces follow an equally consistent pattern. In most cases, technical and caretaker’s facilities occupy the basement levels, stacked alongside parking, plant rooms, transformers, and waste storage, while the floors above are progressively given over to lobbies, retail, open-plan offices, and premium amenities. The caretaker begins and ends their shift underground, accessing

the building through service entrances and lifts, with changing rooms, lockers, and break spaces. Those dedicated rooms are often too small, window less and poorly designed.

40 LEADENHALL

CARETAKERS’ ROOMS

LEVEL: BASEMENT -1

Architect: Make Architects Location: London, UK Date: 2024 Area: ~84,500 m²

The caretakers’ and staff rooms are located in the basement floor.

Total building area

Spatial indicator

A large-scale office/commercial development in the City of London’s insurance district consisting of two towers (rising 14 and 34 stories respectively) built over a shared multi-story podium. The architecture features a stepped profile arranged in vertical slices that cascade downward to protect views of St. Paul’s Cathedral. The complex incorporates outdoor green roof terraces, an auditorium, a central pocket square, public restaurants, and the Grade II listed 19-21 Billiter Street heritage building.

Spatial allocation for caretakers 0,30%

22 BISHOPSGATE

CARETAKERS’ ROOMS

LEVEL: BASEMENT -2

Architect: PLP Architecture Location: London, UK Date: 2020 Area: ~118,450 m²

The caretakers’ and staff rooms are located in the lower level of the basement floor.

Spatial indicator

A 62-story office/commercial skyscraper standing 278 meters tall in the City of London financial district. The vertical layout includes workspace, an active food marketplace, a public gym with a window-integrated climbing wall, and a dedicated 2,263 m² Gordon Ramsay restaurant block spanning levels 58M through 61.

Total building area

Spatial allocation for caretakers 0,15%

52 LIME STREET (THE SCALPEL)

CARETAKERS’ ROOMS

LEVEL: BASEMENT -2

Architect: Kohn Pedersen Fox (KPF) Location: London, UK Date: September 2018 Area: ~59,400 m²

The caretakers’ and staff rooms are located in the lower level of the basement floor.

Spatial indicator

A 38-story, 190-meter-tall office/ commercial skyscraper featuring a distinctive, sharp geometric silhouette angled specifically to preserve protected viewing corridors of St. Paul’s Cathedral.

Total building area

Spatial allocation for caretakers 0,47%

EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTION

-1 BASEMENT

location dedicated space for caretakers

In universities and schools, caretaker spaces are characteristically pushed to the periphery of the plan. Just like in office towers, they are often placed in the basement or in back-of-house areas. Sometimes, staff members are requested to wear uniforms yet given no changing room or only a space shared between genders creating a situation where workers must negotiate privacy and comfort in a space too small and too mixed to offer either.

LONDON SCHOOL OF ECONOMICS

Architect: Grafton Architects Location: London, UK Date: December 2021 Area: 18,100 m²

The caretakers’ room is located in the basement floor.

Spatial indicator

An urban academic facility spanning ten upper floors and two basement levels. The ground level features a large, open public plaza known as the Great Hall, which connects the building directly to the street grid. Classrooms and teaching spaces sit on the lower floors, academic offices sit on floors three through nine, and the athletic facilities are housed in the subterranean basement levels.

Total building area

Spatial allocation for caretakers 0,22%

UCL WATES HOUSE

Architect: Hawkins\Brown Location: London, UK Date: December 2016 Area: 8,887 m²

The caretakers’ and staff rooms are located in the basement floor.

Spatial indicator

A deep retrofit and expansion project that wrapped a brand-new perimeter envelope and two vertical extensions over a stripped 1970s structural concrete frame. The facility includes groundfloor public exhibition spaces, central circulation stairs, student workshop facilities, seminar rooms, open-plan architectural design studios, and administrative offices.

Total building area

Spatial allocation for caretakers 0,50%

Bored Panda (Digital Media) Bored Panda. (n.d.). 40 of the worst work break rooms ever shared by people who deserve better. Bored Panda. https:// www.boredpanda.com/worstwork-break-rooms-ever/ Reddit (Social Media - Archive/ Community Discussion) r/LiminalSpace. (2020, November 11). Our break room at work (Community Mental Health) [Online forum post]. Reddit. https://www. reddit.com/r/LiminalSpace/ comments/jrzrq3/our_break_ room_at_work_community_ mental_health/ r/LiminalSpace. (2021, March 5). The breakrooms [Online forum post]. Reddit.

https://www.reddit.com/r/ LiminalSpace/comments/lytk8r/ the_breakrooms/ r/LiminalSpace. (2024, April 18). Right justified break room [Online forum post]. Reddit. https://www. reddit.com/r/LiminalSpace/ comments/1c76g2m/right_ justified_break_room/ Wikipedia (Encyclopedia) Wikipedia contributors. (2024, May 15). Break room. In Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved June 5, 2024, from https:// en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Break_ room

DOMESTIC DOMAIN

-1 BASEMENT

minimum space

minimum daylight

location dedicated space for caretakers

worker bathroom

laundry room kitchen

In the private villa, the caretaker’s room sits in direct adjacency to the kitchen and laundry room, sharing a corridor with utility storage and rarely connected to the living spaces, or light. In certain countries, this space is often exempt from the floor area ratio therefore, not required to have unobstructed windows, and capped at eight square metres. In this case, the classification is alongside storage and outhouses.

worker bedroom

CASA LA ENCANTADA III

CARETAKERS’ ROOMS

LEVEL: GROUND FLOOR

Architect: Javier Artadi Location: Lima, Peru Date: 2010 Area: 560 m²

The service quarters and maids’ room are located toward the rear interior of the primary volume next to the kitchen and main service entrance.

Spatial indicator

A minimalist, white geometric block designed for a coastal wetlands setting. The built volume is pushed along a single axis to maximize open land for a continuous lawn, terrace, and swimming pool.

Total building area

Spatial allocation for caretakers 3,78%

CASA CHAVEZ

CARETAKERS’ ROOMS

LEVEL: BASEMENT -1

Architect: Miguel Rodrigo Mazuré Location: Lima, Peru Date: 1959 Area: 305 m²

The services and maids’ room are located in the basement, inside the opaque, stone-clad lower baseline volume resting against the mountain slope.

Spatial indicator

A landmark of Peruvian Modernism influenced by Case Study House principles. It features a lightweight glass-and-steel frame terraced into a steep hillside to create a transparent pavilion with panoramic city views. The layout uses a binuclear approach where the primary living areas face the outer perimeter view

Total building area

Spatial allocation for caretakers 8,68%

VILLA D&G

CARETAKERS’ ROOMS

LEVEL: FIRST FLOOR

Architect: VMX Architects Location: Muscat, The Sultanate of Oman Date: 2025 Area: 2050 m²

The service infrastructure, including the maids’ rooms, is located on the first floor in the back side of the villa.

Spatial indicator

A coastal super-villa carved directly into a steep rocky cliff facing the Gulf of Oman. The design utilises a multi-level layout that features open-plan upper levels integrated with courtyards and water elements to manage the climate.

Total building area

Spatial allocation for caretakers 4%

Ayoub, M., & Public Works Studio. (2019, November 27). Public Works Lebanon highlights windowless “maid’s rooms” in Beirut. Dezeen. https://www.dezeen. com/2019/11/27/public-workslebanon-windowless-maidsrooms/ Baldwin, E. (2022, May 14). From the maid’s room to the outskirts: How does architecture respond to the social changes of domestic work? ArchDaily. https:// www.archdaily.com/980816/ from-the-maids-room-tothe-outskirts-how-doesarchitecture-respond-to-thesocial-changes-of-domesticwork

Kanafani, S., & Public Works Studio. (2021, September 22). The 5m² maid’s room: Lebanon’s racist, gendered architecture. Failed Architecture. https:// failedarchitecture.com/the5m2-maids-room-lebanonsracist-gendered-architecture/ Minassian, N. (Director). (2021). The hidden room [Short documentary]. Liwa.tv. https://liwa.tv/discover/casestudies/article/the-hidden-room Vargas, S. (2021). Maids’ rooms, habitaciones de servicio, Casa La Encantada [Artwork collection profile]. KADIST. https://kadist.org/ work/maids-rooms

OFFICE BUILDING

INSTITUTION

DOMESTIC DOMAIN

40 LEADENHALL

LONDON SCHOOL OF ECONOMICS

CASA LA ENCANTADA III

3,78% 0,30%

22 BISHOPSGATE

0,22%

CASA CHAVEZ

UCL WATES HOUSE

8,68% 0,15%

52 LIME STREET (THE SCALPEL)

0,50%

VILLA D&G

4% 0,47%

Artadi, J. (2010). Casa La Encantada III: Ficha de Registro de Obra. Artadi Arquitectos Oficina de Arquitectura, Lima, Perú. City of London Corporation. (2020). Schedule of Certified Net Internal Areas (NIA), Amenity Spaces, and Hospitality Provisions: 22 Bishopsgate (Planning Application Ref: 15/00823/ FULEIA). Department of Built Environment, London, UK. City of London Planning Register. (2024). Delegated Approval and Handover Certification: 40 Leadenhall Commercial Complex. City of London Department of Planning and Transportation, London, UK. Colegio de Arquitectos del Perú (CAP). (2011). Registro de Edificaciones Residenciales: Distrito de Chorrillos. Revista El Arquitecto Peruano, (242), 45-48. Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat (CTBUH). (2020). The Scalpel (52 Lime Street), London. CTBUH Height and Floor Space Database. Grafton Architects. (2021). The Marshall Building for the LSE. Grafton Architects Project Portfolio, Dublin, Ireland. Hawkins\Brown Architects. (2016). 22 Gordon Street: Deep Retrofit and Metric Expansion Analysis for University College London. Hawkins\ Brown Case Studies, London, UK. Kohn Pedersen Fox Associates. (2019). 52 Lime Street (The Scalpel): Core Geometric Offset and St. Paul’s Viewing Corridor Compliance Report. KPF Project Monographs, New York/ London. London School of Economics and Political Science. (2022). The Marshall Building (44 Lincoln’s Inn Fields): Post-Occupancy Evaluation and Certified Internal Floor Areas. LSE Estates Division, London, UK. Make Architects. (2024). 40 Leadenhall Street: Completion Report, Gross Internal Area Survey, and Grade II Heritage Integration Status. Make Architects Studio Archives, London, UK. Ortiz, D. (2011). Habitaciones de servicio [Service Rooms: Architectural Analysis of Upper-Class Residential Typologies in Lima]. àngels barcelona, Barcelona, Spain. PLP Architecture. (2021). 22 Bishopsgate: The Vertical City. PLP Architectural Press Kits & Technical Specifications, London, UK. Rodrigo Mazuré, M. (1963). Memoria descriptiva y adjudicación del Premio Tecnoquímica 1963: Casa Chávez en Las Casuarinas. Anales del Instituto de Arte Americano e Investigaciones Estéticas, 16, 112-115.

Universidad de Lima. (n.d.). Casa Chávez (Código: 1959-M-02). Catálogo de Arquitectura del Movimiento Moderno en el Perú. Facultad de Ingeniería y Arquitectura, Lima, Perú. University College London (UCL). (2017). The Bartlett School of Architecture Building Registry & Estates Strategy 2015-2020. UCL Estates, London, UK. VMX Architects. (2025). Villa D&G, Muscat, Sultanate of Oman: Project Monograph and Climate-Adaptive Design Specifications. VMX Architects Archives, Amsterdam, Netherlands.

THE ROOMS INVENTORY This chapter is an inventory of the rooms allocated to caretakers in the day-to-day operation of a building. It covers the spaces found at the bottom of the building’s hierarchy: the break room, the locker room, the security office, the small staff kitchen, and the equipment storage. Each room is documented through its contents and the conditions it provides to those who use it. Caretaker spaces are mostly designed to satisfy a checklist of safety, fire, and cleanliness regulations; they meet the legal minimum. Visual comfort, atmosphere, natural light, and the basic human need for a dignified place to rest are often absent. The spaces are technically provided but spatially inadequate, filled with cold white light, standardised furniture, and no connection to the outside. Those rooms cannot expect staff to want to stay in them. There is a gap between a break room designed for building users and one designed for building staff. Some researchers conceptualise the break room as a complex spatial and material order for interaction, a neutral social territory where workplace hierarchies are temporarily suspended. It is also described as an essential employee support space intended to facilitate physical rest, unfiltered peer connection, and psychological recovery away from daily job demands. By either definition, the break room is not a luxury. It is a necessity. Yet for caretakers, that necessity is consistently relegated to the basement and made too small, across typologies, countries and building generations. Spaces such as caretakers’ break room are placed in the basement because they do not generate rent, and house do not house one that the building is designed to impress. It is the spatial logic of ancillary classification made architectural. This chapter does not claim to be a complete picture but attempts to make visible a layer of space that is too often absent from architectural briefs, building programmes and public conversation.

BREAK ROOM OFFICE ROOM CHANGING ROOM STORAGE ROOM INVENTORY OF SIGNS

BREAK ROOM

Water dispenser

Clock

Kitchen

Furnitures

Bin

Water dispenser

White board

Catering urn

Table

Polypropylene chair

Push-door trash can

Microwave

Clock

Toaster

Kettle

Tableware

OFFICE ROOM Cabinet

Clock

Office appliances

Desk

Cabinet

Task chair

Portable heater

Tanker desk

Computer

Wire mesh wastebasket

Clock

CHANGING ROOM

Locker Cloth rack

Bench

Matting

Locker

Bench

Floor mat

Cloth rack

STORAGE ROOM

Tool storage and carriers

Storage

Shelving and racking Safety cabinet

Cleaning carrier

Carrier

Safety storage

Cleaning signs

Tools

SIGNS

Directory signage

Fire signage

Danger signage

Assistance signage

Staff signage

REGULATIONS & LAW This chapter examines the regulations and laws that govern the spaces allocated to building caretakers, and the gaps within them that affect the conditions. The legal framework is a patchwork of building codes, occupational health regulations, and voluntary certification standards, each governing a different aspect of what a workplace must provide and for whom. The regulations analysed cover primarily the Netherlands and the United Kingdom. In the Netherlands, the UK, and most of the EU, regulations make a key distinction between primary workspaces and ancillary spaces. Facilities management spaces typically fall into the second category due to the duration of occupation. The analysis on how architecture is itself a form of regulation is also covered in this chapter. It is less identifiable than law but operates surreptitiously, shaping behaviour without those who experience it perceiving that their experience has been deliberately shaped. The chapter raises the question of whether those regulations, as currently written, are an adequate framework for spatial justice.

CERTIFICATION EXPLANATION CERTIFICATION MAP REGULATORY FRAMEWORK FOR A BREAK ROOM ARCHITECTURE AS LAW

DUTCH REGULATORY FRAMEWORK EXPLAINED

The Dutch framework operates through several layered instruments. • At the top sits the Arbowet (Working Conditions Act), which establishes the general duty of care. It sets no specific numbers but defines the fundamental principle that employers are responsible for the health and safety of their workers. • Below the Arbowet, the Arbobesluit (Working Conditions Decree) translates that duty into specific mandatory rules. A break room is required whenever more than ten workers are present, or when the nature of the work makes it necessary for health or safety reasons. Daylight must be provided “voor zover mogelijk” (as far as reasonably possible). This is not an absolute requirement and leaves room for interpretation. Ventilation must meet a minimum of 2.12 litres per second per person in existing buildings and 4 litres per second in new build. Lighting must reach at least 200 lux, with 400 lux preferred. As guideline and not fixed legal minimum, a space of 1.25 m² per person in break rooms is advised. • Running parallel to the Arbobesluit is the Bbl (Besluit bouwwerken leefomgeving), which governs the physical structure of the building itself. The Arbobesluit is the employer’s responsibility and the Bbl is the building owner’s. The Bbl classifies every space by its gebruiksfunctie (use function). Functions like changing rooms or equipment storage are typically classified as functiegebied (functional space), but caretaker’s break room also fall into this category. When considered ancillary, daylight requirements may be zero and becomes the legal mechanism that makes a windowless basement room technically compliant even for break rooms. The NEN 1824 recommends 7–10 m² per person for office workstations but is voluntary and advisory not legally binding for maintenance environments unless contractually agreed, though civil liability can bring it into force. The RI&E (Risk Inventory and Evaluation) requires employers to assess real hazards including cramped space and ergonomic risks, and its findings determine what workspace conditions are actually needed for the specific work being performed. The only critical legal threshold that bridges the Bbl and the Arbobesluit: if a worker spends more than two hours a day in a space, that space legally becomes a workplace, and Arbobesluit daylight and ventilation requirements apply, regardless of how the Bbl classified it. Measuring the two hours time frame becomes difficult and is often not done.

OTHER

DUTCH BVO / GBO CLASSIFICATION (BBL) The Besluit bouwwerken leefomgeving (Bbl, formerly Bouwbesluit) classifies every space in a building by its gebruiksfunctie (use function). - Verblijfsruimte / verblijfsgebied, a space where people stay and work, subject to full requirements for daylight, ventilation, minimum dimensions. Office workspaces, classrooms, meeting rooms fall here. - Functiegebied, a space where functional activities happen but no sustained human presence is assumed. Storage, plant rooms, service corridors fall here. - Onbenoemde ruimte, undesignated space, essentially infrastructure.

BREAK ROOM (PAUZERUIMTE) REQUIREMENTS A break room is mandatory: every employer must have at least one space where workers can spend their breaks, relax and eat. Education Sector: The caretaker must have a central, visible post that is ergonomically sound, and a right to a private break area separate from students to ensure “mental recovery.” Cleaning & Facility Services (RAS Arbocatalogus Schoonmaak- en Glazenwassersbranche): Defines the “Opkomstruimte” (starting room / base camp). Specifies that the employer (FM company) and client (building owner) must agree on providing: a place to sit and eat, clean toilets and washing facilities, and lockers for personal belongings (separated from work tools). Municipalities (A&O Fonds Gemeenten): Highlights the requirement for daylight and ventilation in rooms where employees spend a significant part of their day. Healthcare (UMCs and Hospitals): Because hospital work is 24/7, the catalog has stricter rules about rest areas having specific climate control (temperature/ventilation) to ensure staff can actually recover during night shifts.

Governs the physical building. Owner’s responsibility. Classifies every space by use type, determining what standards apply.

Building regulations

Bbl (NL) · Building Regs (UK)

Primary legislation

EU Framework Directive

89/391/EEC - shared European root Sets minimum health & safety obligations across all EU member states. NL and UK national laws both derive from this directive.

Wellbeing clause

Arbowet (NL) · H&S at Work Act 1974 (UK)

Arbowet Art. 3 - rarely enforced

High-level national law. Defines the general duty of care. Sets the principle that employers are responsible for worker health & safety.

work must be organised in a way that promotes employee well-being. This clause rarely gets enforced in practice, but it exists as a legal opening for challenging inadequate conditions.

Working conditions law

Arbobesluit (NL) · WHS Regs 1992 (UK) Governs how people are treated inside the building. Employer’s responsibility. Sets specific rules: daylight, space, break rooms, ventilation

Advisory: NEN 1824 is a private-law document. Applying it is not mandatory unless parties have agreed to do so. However, a court can still hold accountable for not applying its requirements if the matter comes to civil litigation 1

PO / VO: Primair Onderwijs / Voortgezet Onderwijs, meaning Primary Education / Secondary Education in Dutch. These are the two sector-specific Arbocatalogi that cover school caretakers. 2

RAS: Reinigings- en Aanverwante Servicebedrijven, the cleaning and facility services sector. That is the catalogue that defines the starting room requirements for cleaners.

Every space is assigned a use type. This determines whether full daylight & ventilation standards apply or not.

Primary

Verblijfsruimte Full reqs.

Ancillary

Space classification

Functiegebied Weak reqs.

Primary vs. ancillary spaces

Unnamed

Onbenoemderuimte No reqs.

OTHERS ADVISORY

GAPS & THRESHOLDS

NEN 1824

Ergonomic space norms (NL) Advisory1 Not legally binding unless agreed contractually. But a court can still hold parties to it in civil litigation.

RI&E risk assessment

Employer-led hazard evaluation (NL) Employers must assess real risks including cramped space, ergonomic strain, and restricted movement.Determines what conditions are actually needed for the specific work.

Responsibility split

Bbl -> building owner · Arbobesluit -> employer labor contractor -> third party gap In most large buildings, responsibility is split between at least three different parties: the building owner, the facilities management company, and the contracted service providers. The Bbl falls on the owner. The Arbobesluit falls on the employer, which for a caretaker is often the contractor, not the owner. Caretaker welfare falls through the gap between them.

Legal threshold

REGULATION BY DESIGN Architecture as regulation

built environment as extralegal regulation The building itself enforces hierarchy by its design aspects without any written rule. For example, Robert Moses’s bridges on Long Island, New York. He allegedly designed the overpasses on parkways leading to Jones Beach so low that public buses could not pass under them, effectively preventing poor and Black New Yorkers, who relied on public transport, from reaching the beach.

If a worker spends >2h/day -> primary workplace If a worker spends more than two hours a day in a space, that space legally becomes a workplace, and working conditions requirements apply, even if building regulations classified that room as storage and assigned no requirements to it.

Education PO/VO2

Sector-specific rules

Arbocatalogi (NL) Industry agreements on how law is met

Cleaning RAS3

Healthcare UMC

Municipalities

A&O Fonds Gemeenten

...

REGULATORY FRAMEWORK FOR A BREAK ROOM

NETHERLANDS

UNITED KINGDOM

LEGAL INSTRUMENT

Arbobesluit (Working Conditions Decree)

Workplace (Health, Safety & Welfare) Regs 1992

IS A BREAKROOM MANDATORY?

Yes when >10 workers or health/safety warrants it

Yes suitable rest facilities require

1.25 m² per person (guideline, not fixed law)

11 m³ per person (ACoP benchmark)

DAYLIGHT

As far as reasonably possible (voor zover mogelijk)

As far as reasonably practicable

LIGHTING

Min. 200 lux, preferred 400 lux

Suitable and sufficient (no fixed lux value)

2.12 l/s/person (existing) 4 l/s/person (new build)

Suitable and sufficient (no fixed numeric value)

Employer (Arbobesluit)

Employer (WHS Regs 1992)

MINIMUM SPACE

VENTILATION RESPONSIBLE PARTY

2.4 m - 2.7m

3.00 m - 3.65m

Robert Moses parkway bridges

Way to Jones Beach

0 GROUND FLOOR

-1 BASEMENT

Caretaker break room

ARCHITECTURE AS LAW

The built environment controls human behaviour just as well as any written rule, as Sarah Schindler contends in Architectural Exclusion: Discrimination and Segregation Through Physical Design of the Built Environment, “Regulation through architecture is just as powerful as law; it is less identifiable.” Regulation is normally identified as anything written, such as a law, a decree, or a code. But the reality is often simple as a movement being impeded by a physical barrier or the lack of pavement deciding who can enter a location just as firmly as a sign at the door. One of the most widely documented example of this principle is Robert Moses’s design of the parkways leading to Jones Beach, New York, completed in 1929. Moses demanded that bridges along the parkways be built unusually low, many at just 2.8m tall below the clearance required for a municipal bus. The beach was then principally reachable by car and segregated non car owners living in specific areas to access it. The decision was documented as part of a broader racist agenda, using infrastructure to control access. This exclusionary infrastructural model represents a more permanent form of exclusion precisely because it is embedded in concrete rather than policy. Sarah Schindler identifies this as a broader pattern in which street grids, the absence of sidewalks, highway placements, and parking permit zones continue to determine who can access which spaces. Courts have consistently struggled to address these forms of exclusion because “it is difficult to show the necessary intent to discriminate, especially in situations involving land use and the built environment.” The position of the caretaker’s break room in the basement belongs to this same category of spatial organisation. No law requires that rest facilities for maintenance workers be placed underground, adjacent to plant rooms and storage, without access to daylight. Yet this is consistently found across building types. Architecture and the built environment creates its own regulation: the physical design of the building itself regulates behaviour without any written rule. The building enforces the hierarchy through its own geometry.

CERTIFICATIONS This chapter documents what certifications are, how they are structured, and what falls outside their scope. The three certification systems analysed here, BREEAM, WELL, and NABERS, together represent the dominant framework through which building quality is currently defined, communicated, and financially valued. Each is examined: what it was created to measure, how it scores buildings, and who it defines as an occupant. It shows how standards are applied globally, how they relate to one another, and how they feed into the financial instruments, GRESB and ESG to make them relevant to landlords and investors.

CERTIFICATION EXPLANATION WELL’S 10 CATEGORIES CERTIFICATION MAP

HOW ARE CERTIFICATIONS CREATED? Building certifications are developed by independent research institutions, private organisations, and industry bodies, and participation is voluntary. Their authority comes from market adoption and not law. Landlords pursue them because investors, tenants, and asset managers increasingly require them as proof of performance. Each certification operates through a points-based system. Buildings accumulate points across categories, and the total determines the level of certification. Points can be earned through design decisions, material choices, operational policies, and post-occupancy performance. BREEAM was created at the Building Research Establishment in 1988, with the first version for assessing new office buildings launched in 1990. It is designed to drive sustainability and wellbeing across the built environment through a robust framework for the verification and certification of built assets, setting standards that help improve a building’s performance at every stage, from design and construction to use and refurbishment. EbishseGovernment Programs WELL was founded in 2014 by the US-based International WELL Building Institute (IWBI). NABERS originated in Australia as a government-backed energy rating system before being adapted for the UK market. Its successful voluntary adoption was significantly supported by government procurement policies, which made higher-rated buildings more attractive by enabling them to obtain government leases.

HOW CERTIFICATIONS SHAPE PRIORITIES: GRESB AND ESG

LANDLORD

GRESB is a globally recognised standard for measuring the environmental, social, and governance performance of real estate and infrastructure portfolios. GRESB scores are increasingly important as investors prioritise ESG performance. A strong score enhances a portfolio’s reputation, making properties more attractive to investors. The certifications like BREEAM, WELL, and NABERS directly affect GRESB scores, which affect investor confidence, which affects asset value and access to capital. Landlords pursue certifications because certifications are now a financial instrument. A higher GRESB score means the portfolio is more attractive to investors, which increases asset value and lowers the cost of capital. The social dimension of ESG “ the S” remains the least developed and least measurable part of the framework. The system therefore produces a paradox in which uildings can achieve the highest levels of sustainability certification, satisfy their ESG obligations, score well on GRESB, and attract premium tenants while the people

who maintain those buildings do not fall under the certification requirements. Most certifications are not a one-time award but require periodic reassessment to remain valid. BREEAM In-Use, for example, is specifically designed for existing buildings and requires renewal every three years. NABERS is even more rigorous in that sense and is reassessed annually based on real meter readings.WELL certification requires a performance verification visit after the initial award and then recertification every three years. They all include on-site testing of air quality, water, light levels, and other conditions. This means that to keep their certifications valid, buildings must be continuously maintained to the standard they were awarded at. All of this is ongoing operational work carried out by the maintenance teams.

WELL’S 10 CATEGORIES: DO ANY COVER CARETAKER WELFARE? 1. Air measures indoor air quality, ventilation, and pollutant levels throughout the building. In theory applies to all occupants including caretakers. In practice, assessments focus on occupied office floors. 2. Water measures access to clean drinking water. Applies to all building users in principle. 3. Nourishment focuses on healthy food options, canteen provision, and nutritional labelling. Oriented entirely toward office tenants and their catering facilities. Does not address the caretaker break room or kitchen. 4. Light measures daylight access, circadian lighting, and glare control. However assessments are based on primary occupied floors, not ancillary spaces. 5. Movement encourages physical activity through building design, stair provision, and fitness facilities. Oriented toward office workers. Does not account for the physical demands already placed on cleaning and maintenance staff. 5.Thermal Comfort measures temperature control and individual comfort. This is applicable for tenant spaces. 6. Sound measures acoustic comfort and noise levels. Oriented toward office productivity. Basement spaces, often adjacent to plant rooms and mechanical equipment, are not included. 7. Materials measures the chemical composition of building materials and furnishings. Not addressed from the perspective of cleaning staff who handle chemical products daily and work in contact with building surfaces. 8. Mind covers mental health policies, stress reduction, and restorative spaces. Oriented entirely toward office tenants. No mention of the workers who maintain those spaces. 9. Community covers civic engagement, inclusion, and accessible design. Does not address the spatial conditions or welfare of building maintenance staff. The standard defines “occupants” in terms that implicitly mean office workers and building users.

BREEAM is measured against ten variables: - Energy - Health and Wellbeing - Innovation - Land Use - Materials - Management - Pollution - Transport - Waste - Water NABERS assesses buildings across sustainability indicators: - Energy efficiency - Water usage - Waste management - Indoor environment quality - Greenhouse gas emissions.

BRE1 (UK)

BREEAM4

Est. 1990

Reassessed every 3 years

The Building Research Establishment, a UK governmentowned research body that created BREEAM in 1990.

A points-based rating system measuring sustainability across ten categories, renewed every three years.

IWBI2 (US)

WELL

Reassessed every 3 years

ESG benchmark for investors

The International WELL Building Institute, a private US organisation that launched the WELL standard in 2014.

A points-based rating system measuring health and wellbeing across ten categories, renewed every three years.

The global benchmark investors use to assess the ESG performance of real estate portfolios.

NABERS5

NSW3 Gov. (AU)

Annual reassessment

Est. 1998

An annual energy and sustainability rating based on real meter readings rather than design intent.

The New South Wales government, which developed NABERS in 1998 as a tool to measure the actual operational performance of buildings.

BRE: Building Research Establishment IWBI: International WELL Building Institute 3 NSW: New South Wales 4 BREEAM: Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Method 1 2

GRESB6 score

Est. 2014

NABERS: National Australian Built Environment Rating System 6 GRESB: Global Real Estate Sustainability Benchmark 7 ESG: Environmental, Social, and Governance 5

Higher rent Premium per m²

Certified buildings command premium rental rates per m².

Asset value

Portfolio attractiveness A strong certification portfolio increases the overall value of the asset and its attractiveness to institutional investors.

Tenant demand Occupancy rate

Certifications signal quality, attracting higherprofile tenants and reducing vacancy rates.

The daily labour of caretaking staff that keeps the building performing at its certified level.

Continuous maintenance Daily labour of caretaking staff

Caretaker welfare not measured No certification covers caretaker space quality, daylight, or dignity

The people who maintain the certified building remain entirely invisible within the framework that depends on them

CASE STUDY: THE OFFICE BUILDING This chapter is a case study on 40 Leadenhall, a mixed-use office development in the City of London, completed in 2018 by Make Architects and owned by M&G Real Estate. The building is 1 contains 77,100 square metres of office space, and holds certifications for BREEAM Excellent, WELL Platinum, NABERS five stars, and WiredScore. It is one of the most certified office buildings in London. The analysis covers the total area, area per person, utilisation intensity, duration of association with the building, economic contribution, and spatial quality. Each analysis asks the same question from a different angle. Together, they attempt to quantify what is otherwise dismissed as a subjective observation that the spatial conditions of caretakers in this building are a result of a system. The spatial analysis presented in this chapter is based on publicly available architectural drawings, building documentation, and available data on building performance and occupancy. Where exact figures could not be independently verified, approximations are indicated. The author acknowledges that conditions may vary across buildings.

40 LEADENHALL BASEMENT PLAN SPATIAL ALLOCATION PER PERSON ALLOCATION SPACE UTILISATION INTENSITY DURATION OF ASSOCIATION ECONOMIC VALUE PROTECTION SPATIAL QUALITY COMPARISON CURRENT VS. WHAT IT SHOULD BE AVAILABLE FACILITIES FOR OFFICE WORKERS VS. CARETAKERS

Leadenhall Street

spatial divison

Fenchurch Buildings

Blitter Street

dedicated rooms for 170 caretakers

40 Leadenhall, London I Make Architects M&G, Nuveen

BASEMENT LEVEL

SPACIAL ALLOCATION This graph exposes the fundamental disparity in how building space is distributed. By visualising the proportion of the building 79,700 m² dedicated to different user groups, it reveals an implicit hierarchy: office workers and tenant amenities occupy 99.6% of space, while the 170 caretakers (FM workers) who maintain the building are allocated just 0.4% (350 m²). This pie chart makes visible the spatial marginalisation of essential workers.

Building totals (m2) Total building (Net Area)

83600 m²

Office/rentable space

77100 m²

Office (incl. basement)

78408 m²

Amenety/retail

6500 m²

Basement floors

4650 m²

Floor area - B2 floor

2570 m²

Floor area - B1 floor

2080 m²

Tenant

1308 m²

Dedicated to caretakers (based on floor plans)

236 m²

Plant rooms, mechanical, electrical

3106 m²

0,28%

space dedicated to office workers (tenants) space dedicated to caretakers

99,72%

PER PERSON ALLOCATION This graph normalises the data to reveal per-person inequality. It answers the question: how much space does each individual actually receive? Office workers get 34.38 m² per person (including amenities and basement facilities), while caretakers share 2.06 m² per person of basement welfare spaces. The 16.7:1 ratio quantifies spatial injustice: those who maintain the building receive 17 times less space per person than those who occupy it.

People Office workers (tenants)

3000

Office workers

2500

Guests

500

Caretakers

170

Comparing m2/person BRITISH COUNCIL OFFICE STANDARD

10 m²/person

A RENTABLE OFFICE SPACE

30,84 m²/person

B INCLUDING AMENITIES

33,44 m²/person

C INCLUDING BASEMENT

33,96 m²/person

CARETAKERS

1,39 m²/person

40 m²/person

30 m²/person

20 m²/person

british council office standard A rentable offic space B including amenities C including basement

10 m²/person

0 m²/person

caretakers

SPACE UTILISATION INTENSITY This graph challenges the assumption that spatial allocation reflects actual use. By calculating annual hours of occupation, it reveals that office spaces are used 17.3% of the year (business hours only), while caretakers facilities must accommodate 24/7 shift coverage (70% of annual hours). The 4:1 utilisation ratio proves that caretaker’s spaces work on average longer than office spaces. They are occupied more intensively yet allocated far less space.

Space utilisation intensity Office hours: 9am-6pm, Monday-Friday 48 weeks/year Actual occupation Effective use Utilisation % of year Office Workers

45 hours/week 2160 hours/year 70% 1512 hours/year 17,3%

Caretakers Building requires 24/7 coverage

8760 hours/year

Caretaker spaces always in use (shifts rotate) Effective use Utilisation % of year FM Workers

Ratio

6132 hours/year 70,0%

70,0%

52,2%

35,0%

17,5%

0,0%

caretakers office workers

DURATION OF ASSOCIATION This timeline challenges the notion that tenants are the building’s ‘primary’ users. By mapping presence over the building’s lifetime (60+ years), it reveals that caretakers are the only permanent occupants. Office tenants cycle through 5-20 year leases over the building’s life. Tenant generations will come and go, while caretaker remains constant. This graph reframes who truly ‘inhabits’ the building and questions why the permanent occupants receive the least space and worst conditions. Duration of association - building lifetime Building expected lifetime

60 years +

Average office lease

10-20 years

Typical tenant turnover

Every 10 years

Tenant 1

20 years

Tenant 2

10 years

Tenant 3

15 years

Tenant 4

5 years 60 years +

Caretakers

tenant 1 tenant 2 tenant 3 tenant 4 caretakers

0 year

15 years

30 years

45 years

60 years+

ECONOMIC VALUE PROTECTION This graph simulates how caretakers actually contribute economically, making visible their role in protecting rental income. Based on approximate numbers, each of the 170 caretakers would safeguards €625,870 in annual rent by maintaining certifications, operating systems, and ensuring tenant satisfaction. It is assumed that the building generates €106.4 million annually. By calculating the cost of failure (3% certification lapse =€3.2M loss, 15%=€16M, 100%=

building obsolescence), this graph showcases caretaker is not a cost center but a value-protection mechanism. The cost of the carers is in comparison minimal compared to the protected value.

Economic value protection Averrage rental across building Annual Rental Income

Value protected by caretakers

1.380 €/m²/year 106.398.000 €/m²/year

divided by number of caretakers

€ 625.870,59

Cost of caretaker failure scenarios Scenario 1 Certification Lapse (BREEAM/WELL) Estimate rent reduction Annual loss

-3% 3.191.940 €/year 120,000,000 €/year

Scenario 2: Major System Failure Estimate rent reduction Annual loss

-15% 15.959.700 €/year

90,000,000 €/year

Scenario 3: Severe Neglect Building becomes obsolete Annual loss

60,000,000 €/year 106.398.000 €/year

30,000,000 €/year

Caretaker operating cost estimate Value protected Caretaker cost (average salary)

106.398.000 €/year 7.650.000 €/year

ROI (return on investment): protected for every 1€ spent of FM

14 €/year

Caetaker represent: of building cost but protects 100%

0 €/year

value protected (by caretakers) caretakers cost (average)

SPATIAL QUALITY COMPARISON This matrix moves beyond quantity (m² per person) to assess quality of space. It reveals that the spatial disparity is not just numerical but experiential. Office workers occupy daylit spaces on floors 1-33 with natural ventilation, dedicated desks, and access to amenities. Mobile caretakers have no special personal workspace despite maintaining all floors. All caretakers share 350 m² of basement facilities without daylight for essential welfare functions (changing, breaks, storage). This comparison tries to expose how architectural design spatially dignifies some workers while marginalising others, even when both occupy the same building.

Spatial quality comparison Quality Metric

Office Workers

Visible catetaker (reception, security…)

Mobile caretaker (Cleaners, Engineers…)

Caretaker welfare facilities

m² per person

33,96 m²/person

1,39 m²/person

Daylight access

YES

In other’s spaces only

NO (basement)

Dedicated Desk

Shared station

NONE

Share Facilities

Floor 1-33

Ground Floor

All floors (moving)

Basement

Break Facilities

Premium spaces / 6500 m² amenities

Basement only

Storage/ Lockers

At desk/changing rooms basement

Basement only

Personal workspace Floor level

CURRENT VS. WHAT SHOULD BE The spatial qualiy comparison tests the current allocation (350 m²) against multiple rational principles to answer: what would caretaker space look like if designed logically rather than as ‘whatever’s left over’? Each principle represents a different basis for allocation: legal compliance, democratic equality, equal dignity, temporal intensity, or economic recognition. The range of current allocation proves that under any defensible logic, caretakers deserve significantly more space. This graph justifies architectural intervention by demonstrating the gap between reality and rationality.

Spatial area Current

m² per person

Justified

Shortfall

Multiplier

236 m²

1,39 m²/person

236 m²

0 m²

236 m²

3,67 m²/person

624 m²

+388m²

2,64x

236 m²

33,96 m²/person

5774 m²

+5538m²

24,47x

236 m²

32,38 m²/person

5504 m²

+5268m²

23,32x

Temporal proportion (specific to UK standard)

236 m²

14,88 m²/person

2530 m²

+2294m²

10,72x

Temporal proportion (specific to building)

236 m²

131,31 m²/person

22324 m²

+22088m²

94,59x

Economic Value (3% protection value)

236 m²

13,61 m²/person

2313 m²

+2077m²

9,8x

Economic Value (15% protection value)

236 m²

68,03 m²/person

11565 m²

+11329m²

49x

Allocation principle Status Quo Legal minimum UK Equal dignity Equal distribution

AVAILABLE FACILITIES FOR OFFICE WORKER VS. CARETAKERS

40 LEADENHALL

OFFICE WORKERS

Library and Think Space 5 independent retail units 2 full-service restaurants Billiter Restaurant Rooftop restaurant and bar Gym and spa Fitness studio Wellness studio Grooming and treatment facilities 200-seat auditorium 30-seat HD cinema room 20th floor communal clubhouse Event rooms Meeting spaces 17 outdoor green spaces and terraces Bike storage Showers Drying rooms Changing rooms

CARETAKERS

Changing rooms Lockers Break room/kitchen Bike storage Toilets/showers

BIBLIOGRAPHY

BOOKS Mattern, Shannon. Maintenance and Care: A Working Guide to the Repair of Rust, Dust, Cracks, and Corrupted Code in Our Cities, Our Homes, and Our Social Relations. Princeton Architectural Press, 2018. Sample, Hilary. Maintenance Architecture. MIT Press, 2016.* Giedion, Sigfried. Befreites Wohnen (Living Liberated). Orell Füssli, 1929. Crain, Marion G., Poster, Winifred R., and Cherry, Miriam A. (eds.). Invisible Labor: Hidden Work in the Contemporary World. University of California Press, 2016.* Weismann, Leslie Kanes. Discrimination by Design: A Feminist Critique of the Man-Made Environment. University of Illinois Press, 1992. Thaler, Richard H. and Sunstein, Cass R. Nudge: Improving Decisions About Health, Wealth, and Happiness. Yale University Press, 2008. ACADEMIC ARTICLES Kaiser, Alma. “In-House, yet ‘Standing Somewhere off’: Spatial Reflections on the Enduring Marginality of Cleaning Staff in High-Ranking London Universities.” Work, Employment and Society, 2022.* Schindler, Sarah. “Architectural Exclusion: Discrimination and Segregation Through Physical Design of the Built Environment.” Yale Law Journal, vol. 124, no. 6, 2015, pp. 1934–2024. Wingfield, Adia Harvey and Skeete, Renée. “Maintaining Hierarchies.” In Crain, Poster, and Cherry (eds.), Invisible Labor: Hidden Work in the Contemporary World. University of California Press, 2016.* Henke, Christopher. “The Mechanics of Workplace Order: Toward a Sociology of Repair.” Berkeley Journal of Sociology, vol. 44, 1999–2000.* Graham, Stephen and Thrift, Nigel. “Out of Order: Understanding Repair and Maintenance.” Theory, Culture & Society, vol. 24, no. 3, 2007, pp. 1–25.* Tronto, Joan C. and Fisher, Berenice. “Toward a Feminist Theory of Caring.” In Abel, Emily K. and Nelson, Margaret K. (eds.), Circles of Care. State University of New York Press, 1990.* Knowles, Scott Gabriel. “Slow Disaster: Deferred Maintenance and the Production of Urban Crisis.” Journal of Urban History, 2020.* MANIFESTOS & PRIMARY TEXTS Ukeles, Mierle Laderman. Manifesto for Maintenance Art. 1969. Marx, Karl. Capital: A Critique of Political Economy, vol. 1. 1867. FILMS & MOVING IMAGE Bêka, Ila and Lemoine, Louise. Koolhaas Houselife. Bêka & Partners, 2008. Manglano-Ovalle, Iñigo. Le Baiser / The Kiss. 1999. Bernatchez, Patrick. I Feel Cold Today. 2007.

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ARTWORKS & PERFORMANCES Matta-Clark, Gordon. Conical Intersect. Paris, 1975. Wall, Jeff. Morning Cleaning, Mies van der Rohe Foundation, Barcelona. 1999. Transparency in lightbox. Koelewijn, Joe. Het Schoonmaken van het Rietveld Paviljoen. 1992. Otero-Pailos, Jorge. Ethic of Dust. 2009. Rotor. Usus/Usures. 2010. O’Brien, Kelly. No Rest for the Wicked. 2004–present. https://www.kelly-o-brien.com/portfolio/project-onef5w4d-smjx4 Ortiz, Daniela. Habitaciones de Servicio / Maids Room. https://www.daniela-ortiz.com/en/habitaciones-deservicio Parks, Gordon. American Gothic, Washington, D.C. 1942. Photograph. Library of Congress. ONLINE ARTICLES Saad, Basyma. “The 5m² Maid’s Room: Lebanon’s Racist, Gendered Architecture.” Failed Architecture. Anderson, Emily Hodgson. “Invisible Labor, Invisible Hands.” Los Angeles Review of Books, 16 April 2022. “Custodians Ensure Our Well-Being. It’s Time We Ensure Theirs.” Yes Magazine, 12 January 2022. https:// www.yesmagazine.org/opinion/2022/01/12/custodians-ensure-our-wellbeing-its-time-we-ensure-theirs “Black Labor After the Siege on Capitol Hill.” Art in America, 2021. https://www.artnews.com/art-in-america/ columns/black-labor-after-the-siege-on-capitol-hill-1234581597/ “U of M Research Offers Rare Look at the Lives of Janitors.” MinnPost, December 2019. https://www.minnpost. com/good-jobs/2019/12/u-of-m-research-offers-rare-look-at-the-lives-of-janitors/ INTERVIEWS Sustainability Manager, office building, London. Interviews conducted 2025/2026. Kaiser, Alma. Researcher, Cultural Organizer and Coordinator. Telephone interview. April 2026. LEGAL & REGULATORY DOCUMENTS Workplace (Health, Safety and Welfare) Regulations 1992. UK Statutory Instruments 1992 No. 3004. https:// www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/1992/3004/body/made Health and Safety Executive (HSE). “Frequently Asked Questions: Room Space.” https://www.hse.gov.uk/ contact/faqs/roomspace.htm Arbobesluit. Besluit van 15 januari 1997, Stb. 1997, 60. Netherlands. NEN 1824. Ergonomie — Vereiste ruimte voor het werken. Nederlands Normalisatie-instituut.* Lebanese Construction Law. Republic of Lebanon.*

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AN INVENTORY OF THE UNDERVALUED