Coffee slurpers and office hoarders beware, the etiquette police are after you!

Global mining corporation BHP takes coal very seriously, and smelly food just as much so. The corporate giant has an "effective" set of office rules, which ban workers from eating at their desk, slinging jackets over their chairs, and even putting sticky notes anywhere on their workstation.

  • Earlier this month the company sent out a memo to its Brisbane employees reminding them of their policies which they say have been in place for a "couple of years". Its "Office Environment Standard" stated:
  • Post-it notes are to be removed from your monitors and keyboards at the end of the day;

- Other than workstation identification and first aid or fire warden signage, nothing is to be placed on workstation dividers, walls or doors at any time; - Additional clothing must be stored in designated storage areas during the workday and not on chairs or at workstations; - Food must not be eaten at your work station; - Food that emits strong odors is not allowed at all; - Mobile phone ring tones kept at low volume and forwarded to voice mail when out of office; and

- No iPod or MP3 players to be used in the office.

BHP spokesperson Samantha Stevens said she was yet to hear of a single complaint, and that the policy was straightforward and effective. She added that the strict policy was in place in order to facilitate switching desks, frequent travel of employees and to maintain security of information.

"It's pretty common in open plan environments to have ground rules so people can work happily and co-operatively in a clean space," Stevens said, adding that the Brisbane memo was reflective of policies across all BHP Billiton offices.