Etiquette Rules and Best Practices for Safe Working in West Quay Offices

Version 2.3

Working in a Coworking space provides a unique experience and the flexibility to act and carry yourself differently than in a traditional office space. However, the opportunity to have a space to work in such a flourishing environment comes with a great responsibility to maintain harmony.

While important in traditional office spaces as well, etiquette rules play an even more significant role in shared spaces. West Quay Offices give you the option to leave your desk at any time to network, take advantage of extra services, and connect with a unique social environment that you wouldn’t find anywhere else. However, this also comes with challenges in terms of your overall privacy, working without distractions, and working with strangers.

It’s for this reason that you need to practice proper etiquette. And even more so, post-pandemic, it’s essential to follow some rules for a productive, friendly, safe, and healthy workspace. So, check out the etiquette rules below and please follow them so we can all work happily together.

Respect boundaries

Both on a physical and emotional level, you should be mindful of other people’s space. For example, make sure that you’re allowing enough room for other people in communal spaces, especially when you have a bunch of items with you. While hot desks are assumed to be shared, dedicated desks and private offices are off limits, so don’t peruse a book, borrow a pen, or go through documents you find on one. If you see someone wearing headphones or immersed in their work, don’t distract them for no reason.

Be Mindful of Noise Management

The first thing you must be mindful of is your volume. In an open office, sound carries a lot easier, and some parts of our office can carry sound through other sections of the workspace as well.

It’s important to know the noise policy, not just for what you can and can’t do, but also to have an understanding of it. Essentially, you should know where you can have Zoom meetings and where you can sing aloud.

Be Considerate of the Shared Areas

For instance, be aware if the kitchen area is also a place for people on laptops to continue working, in which case make sure you aren’t talking too loudly. So, just be aware of where you are in the office and adjust your behaviour to correspond to that area and if there are others working around you.

Minimize Noise & Distractions

Since a Coworking space or Shared Office is a place of business, everyone in the space should do their best to minimize noise and distractions. Excessive noise and distractions can negatively impact productivity and may cause friction among other occupants in a shared workspace.

Speak quietly & take calls in private

If you have to have a prolonged conversation with someone or take a phone call in a Shared Office, try to do it in one of our phone booths or in your private office if you have one.

Wear headphones for music/video

Whether you listen to music for pleasure while working or watch videos for work purposes, consider wearing headphones instead of allowing the audio to play over laptop, computer or smartphone speakers.

Set phone to silent mode

Many professionals rely on their phones to get work done in a Coworking space or Shared Office, but ringing phones and phone notifications can be distracting. When possible, put your devices on silent to avoid bothering others.

Don’t make excessive noise Early/late

While you should always avoid excessive noise in a Shared Office or Coworking space, you’re encouraged to take extra precautions to stay quiet Early in the morning and late in the afternoon into the Early evening. Many people have a harder time focusing during early mornings or late in the day.

Read the room

Remember that, first and foremost, Coworking spaces are for work. Our lounge area and office spaces are full of members working all day and even at night.

Be aware that not everyone may be comfortable striking up a conversation. One universal rule for Coworking spaces is to avoid disturbing people who are obviously focused, which they may signal by wearing headphones.

Meetings

You may have small meetings in the lounge area as long as they are under 30 minutes, and the noise level is limited. This kind of quick meeting should be short, generally with two people.

For all meetings longer than 30 minutes, privacy is needed, there will be discussions, or there will be more than two attendants. This should be done in one of our Meeting Rooms.

We have two Meeting Rooms that you can book through our member portal, information tablets attached to the Meeting Rooms, our mobile application or reception in person.

Informal meetings are part of Coworking. If you’re hosting a formal meeting or need a screen to share private information, then the lounge area or your desk might not be the right location. You can book one of our two Meeting Rooms for full privacy and to look professional. Our meeting rooms are equipped with everything you may need for a professional meeting.

Small Meeting Room

If you want to make a Zoom/Teams or any online meeting and you don’t have a Private Office (or don’t want to do your meeting there), book a small meeting room for an extended or group call. This room can accommodate 4 people, has a 65-inch 4K UHD TV if you want to broadcast your meeting, and it is soundproof as well.

These Meeting Rooms are a lot cheaper than our Large Meeting Room, and if you have an active membership, you already have a lot of free booking cash-back credits in your account. These credits will expire at the end of each month. So please use them. You can also book them easily by tapping your mobile phone or tablet in front of each room. You can make last-minute bookings as well.

Large Meeting Room

This meeting room can accommodate 8 people and is packed with everything you may need:

• 65″ 4K UHD TV that you can easily broadcast,
• Cisco Conference Call Phone,
• Wireless charger for two mobile phones at same time,
• Catering option.

If you plan to do any informal or business meeting with up to 8 people, this should be the spot to make it happen.

Zoom/Teams Meetings

Try not to do Zoom meetings in common areas like the lounge area. If you have to, try to lower your voice and use headphones. Everyone understands that some level of noise is acceptable in the lounge area, but be reasonable about the amount of noise you create.

If your meeting will take more than 10 minutes, jump in one of the phone booths. They are free for all and sound-proof.

If you have a private office, please do your meetings there. If you can’t, or if you are a Coworking Member, please book a small meeting room or use our phone booths for these meetings. Our Small Meeting Room can be booked for as little as 30 minutes. All memberships have included meeting room cash credits in their accounts that will expire each month. There is no reason you should not do your meetings in a comfortable meeting room in full privacy. Our Meeting Rooms are equipped with a 4K TV and HD video camera, so you can connect your laptop and technically have a high-quality meeting.

Step away for phone calls

Don’t take a call for more than one to two minutes out loud in the lounge area, corridors, and private booths. Even a one-minute call could be deeply frowned upon sometimes.

Nothing is more distracting than hearing 50% of other people’s conversations, because our brains will leap at the opportunity to fill in the gap rather than focus on the work in front of us.

Phone Booths

If you do not have a private office or have booked a meeting room – we strongly encourage everyone to use our upgraded phone booths for their phone calls or Zoom meetings.

Our phone booths were recently upgraded with sound insulation made from recycled materials to tune out office noise.

Our phone booths can be used by any Member, they are free and do not require any booking.

How do I know if the phone booth is not occupied?

If you see a green light inside, that means you can enter the phone booth. and it is free for your use. Regular white light or if the “On Air” sign outside the phone booth is red, it means it is occupied and please do not enter.

Single Private Work Booths

These are single work pods for a single person. We also provide a monitor in there so one can connect their laptop and work in harmony without getting distracted by surroundings or sounds.

Click here to learn more about our private booths.

Lounge Area Work Booths

These will provide you with some minor privacy for your client meetings if you won’t be talking about top-secret deals. We have six of them and can accommodate up to four people.

Cofidentiality

If you overhear anything from other people in the workspaces, please try not to disclose such information to any other third party. 

While Coworking spaces are great spaces for collaborative working and sharing ideas, if you are discussing sensitive information, whether on the phone, with a colleague, or with another person, while we encourage our customers to act with discretion if they overhear something, it is your responsibility to ensure that your confidential information remains confidential (such as by booking a meeting room or using a phone booth to discuss sensitive information). 

You use the open Coworking environment at your own risk. 

Dining

Small snacks and coffee can be consumed in all areas as long as you keep the location clean afterwards. Dining and food should be consumed in our dining area near the kitchen.

We serve gourmet coffee and tea selection 24/7, cold juices, and snacks on special days complimentary in the kitchen area. You can also bring or order your own food and beverages if you want. You can use our microwave and utensils in our kitchen area.

You can also purchase snacks and beverages from our self-checkout honest bar.

While you can always drink beverages or consume cold snacks in our workspaces and Meeting Rooms, dining is only permitted in our designated dining area. You cannot dine in our Meeting Rooms, private booths, or lounge areas other than the dining section. You can dine in your private office if you prefer.

West Quay Offices is not a restaurant, does not have servers for cleaning desks or resources after food consumption, but it provides an eating area for members that needs to be maintained and cleaned by everyone using it. We do not have a funnel to get that food, heating, or cooking smell out of our office space.

You cannot cook on our premises (except for the use of the coffee Maker and microwave). Microwave to be only used for heating your meal.

Honesty Bar

Our honesty bar is an unattended beverage and snack bar by the entrance of the kitchen. It includes a two-door display fridge and snack rack. Snacks and beverages in the honesty bar are not free, as are our regular complimentary gourmet coffee, cold juice dispenser, cereals, etc.

Prices are displayed on tags and can also be seen when accessing online menu. Payment is left to our members. If you grab beverages or snacks from honesty bar, you need to self checkout with one of the ways by paying. Click here to learn how to shop from the Honesty Bar.

If you grabbed items from the Honesty Bar and forgot to pay, please pay immediately. If you did not make payment on the same day, please inform reception as well.

Foods to avoid in our workspaces

Working in a Coworking space means you come across many people from different domain of work, different cultures, different tastes, different lifestyles, etc. Keeping this in mind, you must also think that people around you will also have different diets, food preferences, and food allergies. Therefore, there are certain types of foods that you should avoid in a Coworking place. To avoid being the annoying, loud chomping, or potent-lunch eater at work, avoid bringing the following food types:

Messy food times like watery fruits, curry, dripping sandwiches, etc are a strict NO in Coworking places. They mess up your place, create extra work to clean, smell, and have a great chance of spilling on other people. Imagine your food getting spilled on another person. How embarrassing would that be! Moreover, your food also got spoiled. Therefore, it is always better to carry dry foods around your workplace.

Some people are also allergic to certain food items or their smell. You cannot always know who likes what food and dislikes what. And you can always pack your lunch in accordance with that. So, what’s the solution? Avoid taking non veg. This might not be a full proof solution but it can work to a great extent. You should always remember that there are many people in your Coworking space. Some of them are vegetarians, some are non-vegetarians, and some might even be vegans. So taking things like fish curry or chicken curry might cause them problems. So it will be rather rude not to consider their discomfort with the smell.

Avoid eating fast food. The greasy smell of fast food also lingers for quite a bit, even after you have finished your lunch. Fermented foods are also the same. They also sent out quite a strong odour. The smell they send out is so strong that they may ask the other person in the next cubicle for the cover.

Strictly avoid onions and garlic. No matter how much you like your dishes seasoned, you should leave onions and garlic off anything you plan to eat in the office. Not only will it make your office space smell bad, but your breath won’t be fit for an afternoon meeting as well.

Be a responsible co-worker and avoid getting these kinds of foods at your workplace to maintain a healthy atmosphere there. Work diligently and let your other co-workers work as well.

In short, try to avoid these kinds of foods at all times:

Fish	Fish is awesome when it is fresh, but leftovers should never be in the office. The smell lingers and takes over the entire office, leaving your co-workers frantically searching for fresh air.
Seafood	All ocean catches, canned or fresh, should be off the menu when snacking at your desk in a co-working space, especially if re-heating is necessary. The fish dish or scallop pie you had last night might be tasty, but the odour is sure to be noticed far and wide. Anchovies, sardines, and mussels can be particularly pungent, so it’s best to wait until you’re home to get your seafood fix.
Curry	Lamb, goat, and vegetarian curries are delicious, however, all the amazing spices that make curry taste so good tend to linger in the air, which isn’t a nice experience for those that get to also eat it. Unfortunately, that appeal is usually reserved for the person (or persons) eating it. For the rest of the office, the smell of curry will be reminiscent of something like body odor—definitely not satisfying. Reheating it in the microwave will even amplify the smell ten times. We’re not sure anyone can use that microwave oven anytime soon.
Fast food	Let’s face it, we all have a hankering for some greasy grub occasionally, but you should stop and think before bringing KFC, McDonald’s, pizza, or any other fast food into your work area. The occasional burger shouldn’t make too much of a difference, but enjoying them too much within the office walls might leave an unwelcome aroma for your coworkers.
Hard boiled eggs	We all know the smell that hard boiled eggs can give off. This horrendous smell comes from sulphur. Fun fact, sulphur is the same compound that gives skunks their defensive smell.
Spicy Meat Kebabs	Lamb kebabs, shawarma, and other kebab fares are appreciated by a lot of people because of the unique taste of this spicy cuisine. Generally, most kebabs (especially those prepared in North Vancouver), will only taste and smell great to the person actually eating them. Even your coworkers around you like kebabs, the smell can be overwhelming and they won’t leave our office for hours to come.
Fried Chicken	Fried chicken smells good … at first. But by the end of the day, that oil-soaked bucket you threw in the trash will have lingered in the air for so long that everyone in your office will feel like a KFC employee. Y’all have worked too hard for that.
Onions	We mostly love onions, but be aware that many people despise them. The smell is powerful and resembles bad body odour. Not to mention, the horrendous breath that you get from eating them. If it seems like all your co-workers are avoiding talking to you, it’s probably from the onions.
Broccoli	Broccoli is an acquired taste for a lot of people, but we can all agree that the smell that comes after microwaving it is absolutely disgusting for most. Bringing broccoli to work is the perfect way to get the office talking about you, but not the way you want them to. Stick to the alternative of raw broccoli with some ranch dipping sauce to avoid the negative attention.
Popcorn	Popcorn is a little different than these other foods. The reason to stay away from bringing popcorn to work is because it smells delicious, rather than disgusting. This leaves the office hungry and desperately wanting some of the popcorn. Unless you bring in enough for the whole gang, leave the popcorn at home for your late night Netflix binge.
Anything crunchy	Chips, pretzels, and popcorn are fun snacks, but listening to someone eat them is annoying and distracting. A common pet hate is hearing other people chew, so consider a less crunchy snack when planning your weekly meals.

Which foods you should prefer?

Dry foods are always a major hit. They are a go to food every time. They won’t drip, and they won’t create any problems. You can eat them anytime. They don’t also have any odour, so they do not cause any problems for the other co-workers.

Potato chips also come in handy in this kind of case. You can buy, eat, and throw them at your discretion. Biscuits, potato chips, and chocolates come to your rescue. You can have a sneak peek into them anytime you get a little time off. Wiping hands will also suffice and you don’t have to worry about washing hands.

Microwave Rules

Discover the most important do’s and don’ts to follow when using the office microwave. Most of this office microwave rules are common sense, but you can easily forget about or skip these basic rules altogether when you’re in a hurry.

Reset the microwave settings if you change

The world will still continue to spin if you forget to do this step, but it’s common courtesy to clear the microwave from the settings you used after you’re finished heating up your food. This point is especially true if you lowered the microwave’s power level or changed to defrost mode.

Others in the office may be tired, in a hurry, or otherwise distracted by the time they arrive for lunch, and they may not notice the changes you’ve made. They’ll be unpleasantly surprised when they cook their microwavable meals for the time indicated and find that they’re still frozen.

If your colleagues notice that you’ve changed the settings, they’ll need to clear those settings before heating up their own lunch. While readjusting the settings is not a big deal sometimes, they’ll get irritated when this reset needs to happen every time they come into the office kitchen. Just push a button to reset the microwave settings after you’ve finished using it.

Clean up any spilled food

Do you diligently clean up the microwave when your soup overflows, or do you look around to see if anyone’s looking and then walk away from the mess, whistling innocently? If you’re the cleaning type, you can move on to the next section. If you’re not, well, if you want to be messy, be messy at home. Consider changing your behaviour when you’re in the office kitchen.

Even if a dirty microwave doesn’t bother you, other people dislike it intensely. Not too many people want to heat up their food in a microwave that has bits of crusty, dried-up soup on the turntable from the day your minestrone boiled over. Nor does anyone appreciate the pizza sauce splattered over the microwave sides from that day your microwavable pizza snack exploded. Most of all, nobody wants to clean up your mess. Spilled food may not seem too bad when it’s yours, but it is 10 times more unappealing when the mess is from another person’s food.

Make sure to clean out the microwave if your food overflows or splatters inside it. Food comes off easily with a paper towel and some water or cleaning spray. To prevent messy explosions, try covering your food with a paper towel or our plastic microwave cover the next time you heat up your lunch. When heating up soup or stew, try using a container with extra space at the top so that the soup is less likely to overflow.

Keep the cooking time minimal

Unless you’re taking your lunch break before or after everyone else, you’ll need to share the microwave. Three minutes is a reasonable amount of time to heat up your meal. Taking more time isn’t fair to your colleagues if they’re waiting to use the microwave. If for some reason, you need extra time to cook your meal, let others go first.

Certain actions raise more ire than others. The following list outlines some of the biggest complaints in the office kitchen. If you want to show good office kitchen etiquette, refrain from the following bad habits:.

Don’t leave your food in the microwave

You may occasionally leave your food in the microwave after it’s finished cooking. Maybe you received an important phone call on your cell, or maybe you got caught up in a fun conversation with your friend at work. Everyone gets distracted sometimes. However, you should keep an eye on your meal and remove it from the microwave as soon as it’s finished warming. Forgetting to remove your food can hold up the wait time for others or put them in the uncomfortable position of removing your food for you.

Even if you’re tempted to leave the room “just for a minute” while your meal heats, don’t do it. Is checking your email, returning a phone call, or whatever else so urgent that you can’t wait? If so, let someone else go ahead of you. Otherwise, stay in the same room, so you can take your lunch out of the microwave immediately.

Don’t take out your colleagues’ food Early

OK, now the following considerations are basic manners::. You shouldn’t remove someone’s meal from the microwave before it’s finished and then put your own inside. While they may have left the room, and maybe you can cook your lunch and leave without them noticing, it’s not a nice act to do.

What if the person is being inconsiderate and sets the timer for 10 minutes? In that case, you may as well quickly heat up your lunch, but that’s the exception to the rule. If you’re still there when the individual comes back into the room, you may want to explain what you did and why. Your explanation may make the person think twice about using the microwave for such a long time.

What if the microwave beeped and your co-worker’s food was sitting inside? In this situation, the proper office microwave etiquette is to wait 30 seconds so that the person can remove the food from the microwave. If the person doesn’t remove the food after the heating time is up, go ahead and remove it yourself.

Don’t heat up strong-smelling food

Yes, this rule may not seem fair when you can’t heat up your leftover fish from dinner last night. However, cooking isn’t fair for your colleagues and other members who share the office kitchen with you and have to smell your lunch. As our lounge area and hot desks are next to the kitchen, the smell can spread as far as the work area, and other members who sit and work in that section won’t feel happy.

While seafood is the main culprit, you should also avoid heating up eggs, heavily spiced foods, or vegetables such as broccoli and brussels sprouts. If you enjoy a spicy meal, consider leaving out the seasonings while reheating it at work and adding the spices to your meal after you remove it from the microwave.

Can’t you give up your seafood? Please consider adding cold, precooked fish to salads or packing tuna sandwiches. You could also go out for lunch and order seafood at a restaurant.

Restaurant Options

West Quay Offices have many restaurants around. Especially if you walk a bit to Lonsdale Quay, you will find an amazing number of restaurants with yummy food.

Clean Up After Yourself

As with parties, social events, and, of course, Coworking spaces, the best practice is to “leave no trace.” For the sake of the staff and the well-being of other members you work with, leave the workspace as if nobody used it. If you don’t want empty bags of chips and granola bar wrappers left on your desk at the time you book it, make sure you don’t leave any waste for the person booking that desk after you. Also, don’t assume that someone will clean the working spot after you.

While this goes without saying in a Coworking space, it’s now important to pay even more attention to the shared areas. Make sure to properly dispose of garbage, as well as use paper towels in bathrooms and kitchens; sterilize the tables where you eat; and try to always have your hands washed or sanitized before and after touching things such as doorknobs and light switches.

Kitchen Area

Please keep the kitchen area clean at all times. Please wash, dry, or place in the dishwasher your cups, glasses, and dishes. Please take care of your visitors’ items as well. Don’t leave used dishes and silverware in the sink or countertops, but rather wash them immediately before putting them away.

Recycle any leftovers at our recycling station.

Maintaining Fridge

Please label and date all food and beverages you put in the refrigerator. Don’t leave open drinks or food in the fridge in a shared kitchen. West Quay Offices reserves the right to throw anything in the refrigerator away that should be thrown out, in our judgment. Please remove any items that belong to you on Friday until 5 p.m. Any items left in the fridge will be recycled in our cleaning during the weekend.

Don’t Overuse Services or Amenities

It can create extra problems and distractions for the members of a workspace when someone oversteps their boundaries. This includes overbooking conference rooms, locking others out, and using a space that is assigned to someone else.

Remember to practice etiquette rules and only use your allocated space; use the Meeting Rooms for the time you actually need it and stay within the space you rented. If your space is inadequate, you can always find a quiet work area or a private booth to work without distractions.

Information and Booking Tablets

All our Meeting Rooms and single work booths have information tablets attached on the front. If these tablets display text in red, it means there is someone inside or a meeting in progress. Do not try to enter the room or disturb others. You can still use the same tablet for booking and learning when the room is next available.

Booking Resources

Resource bookings are accepted from individuals on behalf of organizations. West Quay Offices accepts no responsibility if the individual in question does not have the authority to book a room; the invoice will be sent to the organization in all cases. Such privileges can be easily adjusted by the owner or team paying Member. Please click here to learn more about how to configure your team.

How to book

To book a meeting and work resource, please read these articles if you do not know how:

• Bookings on the Members Portal
• Booking Resources on Display Tablets
• Booking resources through mobile app
• Accessing Bookings on the Members Portal
• Google Calendar Integration (to book resources using Google Calendar)

Responsibility

If you are booking any resources, you are responsible for:

• appointing a contact person (in all cases, the organization will be sent the invoice),
• leaving the resources in good order,
• any damages incurred.
• any additional janitorial cleanup.
• use of our resources in any way that results in annoyance or disturbance to us or any other members.
• your visitors and their actions if any visitors attend your booking.

Custom Setups

• Custom setups must be confirmed at the time of booking (may incur additional costs).
• Custom setups may not be available for bookings made less than one (1) week in advance.
• There is no guarantee that the requested setup can be accommodated for last minute bookings.

Extra Time

If a meeting runs overtime or if you require extra time, as soon as you realize that you may require additional time, it is imperative that you inform our reception prior to the event or on the day of your event. You may extend your booking on our Member’s portal, mobile app, and tablets in front of each booking room. Kindly note that extending time in a meeting room or our resource is only possible if no one else has booked it after yours.

Liabilities

The group or individual booking the facility shall be responsible legally, financially, and otherwise for any damage to the said premises as a result of the use and occupation.

Our liability

We are not liable for any loss as a result of our failure to provide a service as a result of mechanical breakdown, strike, delay, failure of staff, termination of our interest in our facilities or otherwise, unless we do so deliberately or are grossly negligent. We are also not liable for any failure until you have told us about it and given us a reasonable time to put it right.

Attendees

The maximum number of attendees for a resource will not exceed the posted room capacities. This number is a maximum of 8 people in large meeting room and 4 people in small meeting room.

Stay home if you are ill.

Another commonsense rule that should go without saying is to stay home if you feel unwell. Regardless of whether you have COVID or not, choosing to work from home should eliminate the risk of spreading whatever you have to your coworkers. Also, if you happen to have some symptoms while at work, go home immediately. Another important thing to keep in mind is to let your employer know that you are feeling unwell so that they may monitor any interactions between you and your coworkers.

Use Common Sense

As a general rule, treat the space like you want it to be treated. This means eating only in the dining area, brushing up on the visitor policy, and smoking or vaping outside if you need too. And while this should go without saying, avoid discriminatory behaviour and harassment toward your fellow freelancers—it’s their space, too.

Be friendly

One of the most important aspects of Coworking is being social and networking with people. Interact with like-minded people and build connections. Be friendly and greet people with a smile; it’ll help you make connections that will help you later in your career. One of the main reasons people prefer to work in a Coworking space is to make connections and build their network.

Say Hello

It’s amazing what that one simple word can do. “Hello“.

If you are working in a Shared Office space, Coworking etiquette is to greet people as you see them. You don’t have to go around the office and ask everyone how their weekend was, but you should show people the respect of recognizing that they are a colleague when you see them as such.

It’s a good idea to start this practice right away when you start using a Shared Office. It’s much easier to say hello on day one than to awkwardly do it after a month. People who work in Coworking spaces are there because they appreciate the value of social and professional interaction, so don’t be afraid to network!

Do engage with the Coworking Community

Talk to people! Coworking spaces are about Community and collaboration. Reach out to your coworkers to bounce off ideas, to discuss hobbies, to help them solve a problem, etc. Interaction and engagement are core parts of any Coworking space, and it’s essential to nurture a strong Community. This doesn’t mean you have to spend most of your time talking to others, but make sure you don’t isolate yourself; if you do, you won’t be getting all the value a Coworking space has to offer. People will want to get to know you; they will be interested in what you do.

Opening and closing times

West Quay Offices open to the public Monday through Friday – 9:00 am to 5:00 p.m., except statutory holidays. 24/7 access is possible if you have a qualifying membership and access card. You will need your access card and fob to access the building for 24/7 access.

You will (and will cause your authorized users to) use reasonable efforts to cause all doors and gates to the premises that you have opened to be closed and securely locked before leaving the building. You and the other members assume full responsibility for protecting the premises from theft, robbery, and pilferage, which includes keeping doors locked and other means of entry to the premises closed and secured.

Visitors/Guests Policy

• A limited number of guests are permitted according to your membership plan. Meeting Rooms should be booked and used by more than one guest. This rule does not apply if you have a private office large enough to host guests.
• You must register all guests through our mobile app or members portal.  Guests are required to check-in at the front desk or using our kiosk, and we will notify you of their arrival. Guests will not be allowed on your floor until you have been properly notified and you or someone from your team pick them up.
• After you register your visitors, their own internet access codes will be sent to them by email.

• Please invite your visitors when you are at our workplace. We won’t allow any visitors in if you are not present in West Quay Offices. We don’t charge you for visitors and we have no personnel to entertain or escort your visitors. If you need such a service, please discuss and get a quote from us. This will require us to hire and maintain extra personnel just for you so you might want to do this on your own to be cost-effective.
• In order for us to know if you are in West Quay Offices or not, you will need to check-in yourself. You can do this by logging in to our WiFi or, if not checking in, by using the kiosk in reception. We may return your visitor if we do not know if you are in. You can learn more about checking in and out by reading this article.
• Visitors cannot use the common areas while you or a Member of your team or yourself are not present with them, especially if they are under the age of majority.
• All visitors must be picked up from the reception area and should not be left alone in our work spaces. You are responsible for your visitors and who you invite to our work spaces. All visitors must be accompanied until they leave our work spaces when your business meetings are finished.
• Just as you and your employees are expected to follow this etiquette in West Quay Offices, your guests should also follow the same etiquette rules. If a guest is unfamiliar with these rules, take a moment to explain them. While this may not be practically possible in each scenario, we ask you to accompany your visitors at all times in our work spaces.
• If your visitors damage any property, use our services excessively without your guidance, or get possession of any items in common areas, or use the honesty bar without paying; you (the contract owner) will be responsible for compensation, costs, and any associated service fees.
• If any visitors of yours start to work in our work spaces without you being present, we will add a Day Pass fee to your next invoice.

Help the staff

If you see that something needs to be fixed or improved, let the staff know; sometimes they don’t even notice. Our current team can be seen on this link to be familiar.

Provide Member Feedback

Etiquette in a shared workspace extends beyond just the courtesy you show toward other business owners and entrepreneurs sharing the space. You also want to follow proper etiquette when dealing with our management. Providing Member feedback is one way to do this, as Member feedback shows you’re engaged and want to see the Coworking space thrive.

Notify staff about any issues needing attention

If you notice any issues, like safety concerns or rule violations, let someone from management know. West Quay Offices designed to be safe, accessible places for occupants, and our management will appreciate your proactive stance on supporting these goals.

Offer suggestions to improve experience

When possible, share feedback with suggestions to improve the experience of working in West Quay Offices. Your feedback and suggestions can help management make decisions that benefit you, your business and the interests of all members.

Complete Member surveys, if applicable

If we provide you with a Member survey, please fill it out and provide details about your experiences. Member surveys are a chance for you to share your voice with management to steer our workspace in a direction that is helpful to all members.

Do read your Community manager’s emails

Emails and communication efforts from your Community manager are important. They’re typically full of useful and relevant information, upcoming events, and important notices (like changes of schedule, holiday hours, closures, updated wi-fi passwords, etc.). This will prevent you from asking unnecessary questions to your Community manager, and it will help make sure that your Coworking experience is as seamless as possible.

Recycle Station & Garbage

Please recycle your garbage in the right spots at this location.

Recycling helps reduce pollution by reducing the need for waste incineration and reducing the environmental impacts of resource extraction and processing. What happens if we don’t recycle is more waste would be incinerated or sent to landfills, increasing air and water pollution all over the world.

You can only dispose of what is illustrated on recycle station banners. You need to recycle in the correct containers. If you feel like you cannot archive this, please do not use the recycle station and take your garbage with you when leaving. If you do not do or do not want to do both of these, we will add a service fee to your account, which is described in the below table.

If you want to learn more about recycling, or what garbage is or is not, please visit City of North Vancouver Municipility pages.

You can only dispose of small items at our recycle station. If you have large items or any items we do not collect, you need to use the garbage room of the building. The garbage room is located on the 1st floor, at the very end of the west side of the building. Make sure you have your building fob with you if you face any locked doors.

Any card board or box that is larger than the letter size and has less than half inch thickness can be thrown in the blue box at the recycling station. You can dispose of anything larger yourself in the building’s main garbage room, or we can recycle it for a fee.

Additionally:

• All garbage must be placed inside the bin.
• All Cardboard must be correctly flattened and placed inside the cardboard bin or blue paper bin if it fits and it must be smaller than letter size with half-inch depth
• Under no circumstances should items be left on the floor, behind or on top of bins
• No area rugs or electronics are permitted to be placed in the recycle station or your room garbage. You can not leave these in building’s garbage room as well. These items must be taken directly to the Recycling Centre or landfill. You can find some helpful addresses below.

Below, please find the fees in the first column if you ask us to dispose of some types of garbage you want us to dispose of for you. In the second column are the fees if you leave your garbage unattended or still dispose of it at the recycle station. These fees will be added to your or the contract paying Member’s invoice without warning. And please remember that you can dispose of these for free in the building’s garbage room on the first floor, which is described above. Please read the next chapter about garbage room etiquette.

	Garbage room of building on west end of 1st floor (not inside our office)	If you ask us to dispose	If you leave unattended anywhere or dispose of it in recycling station
Glass (not bigger than bottle)	Free	$5 per item	$10 per item
Cardboard or box larger than letter and/or half inch deep	Free	$10 per item	$20 per item
Any dry or oversized garbage or junk that should not be in black container per our chart	Free	N/A	$20 per item
If you dispose food scraps or whole food in any container other than green organic	N/A	N/A	$10-$30, depending on the mess, we need to clean and transfer to green organic container

Garbage room etiquette of the main building (on 1st floor)

Please note that the below rules apply to the garbage room on the 1st floor, which our members with private offices can use. We have very limited garbage collection inside our office space, which has been described in the above chapter. You are free to use the commercial garbage room on the 1st floor of the building if you have excessive garbage and certain items (like glass bottles for example).

• Double-bag the garbage bag when needed to make sure there are no leaks
• All garbage must be placed inside the bin. If the bins are outside, please come back once they have returned to the room
• All Cardboard must be correctly flattened and placed inside the cardboard bin or blue paper bins
• No items, under any circumstances, should be left on the floor or on top of bins
• No furniture, paintings, area rugs, or electronics are permitted to be placed in the garbage room. These items must be taken directly to the recycling centre or landfill by yourself.
• No propane or related BBQ equipment is to be left in the garbage room. Please drop off to the Recycling Centre
• Donations will not be accepted from the garbage room. Please drop off at the nearest Donation Centre.

Recycling & Waste Centre

North Shore Recycling and Waste Centre
30 Riverside Drive, North Vancouver BC, V7H 1T4

Donation Centre

SPCA Thrift Store
1523 Pemberton Avenue, North Vancouver BC, V7P 2S3

Sustainability and Environmental Responsibility

West Quay Offices emphasize the importance of Sustainability and environmental responsibility, encouraging all our members to adopt practices that contribute to a greener workspace. Here’s how members can actively participate:

Waste Reduction and Recycling

All members are encouraged to minimize waste by using resources judiciously. This includes being mindful of unnecessary printing and making use of recycling facilities provided in the space.

Read our knowledge base article about how to reduce your office waste.

Energy Conservation

One key aspect of environmental responsibility is conserving energy. Members can contribute by ensuring lights, computers, and other equipment are turned off when not in use. 

Support for Green Initiatives

West Quay Offices implemented green initiatives, such as using eco-friendly products, installing energy-efficient lighting, or creating green spaces. Members can support these efforts by participating in or adhering to these initiatives.

By collectively engaging in these sustainable practices, members not only contribute to an environmentally friendly workspace but also encourage a culture of responsibility and mindfulness towards the planet.

Mails and Packages

If your membership allows, we will collect your mail and package receipts. We will notify you by email; you will see the notification on our Member portal and on our mobile app as well. For members who have mail and package services as part of their membership, mail and packages can be picked up at the reception desk.

You must use the exact mailing address without modification,, as set forth by us. The delivery address on any mail you receive must include the following components, in this order: Intended addressee’s individual name or business name and full address.

If you are a team and all your staff are registered as members’, we will collect mail for them too. We will return any mail without a proper address to the sender endorsed “Undeliverable”. Furthermore, the name of the addressee must match the names registered on the account. We would not be able to sort mail if we did not have the proper name on record.

We accept mail for one company per contract. If you have additional companies, you need to purchase an additional Virtual Office plan for $50 for each additional company and ask us to add this company to your account.

Packages must be collected within 30 days of receipt, and letters within 60 days of receipt. After such a period, we reserve the right to return the items to the sender at your expense, charge a storage fee, or dispose of the items. If you are expecting exceptionally large or valuable deliveries, please inform the reception so that we may arrange appropriate receipt and storage. Coordinate with us if you want this package or mail to be forwarded.

Don’t give your sales pitch to fellow members

There’s a fine line between asking for feedback and selling your product or service to members. We have a private discussion board, channel, or group that allows members to easily get in touch with one another; these groups should be used to ask for feedback, recommendations, and the like, not to try and get more clients. Those who are interested in what you do will reach out to you themselves. If you constantly try to sell to them, you’ll become a sort of outcast, and they will be less likely to give you the time of day.

No Posters or Signs

To keep things fair and consistent for all members, please don’t put up signs or posters on interior and exterior windows or walls.

Couriers and Delivery

For the safety of all members, delivery personnel and couriers are not permitted beyond the front desk in West Quay Offices. Any delivered packages will be photographed and sent to you via notification email.

Food Delivery

Please instruct delivery not to leave your food unattended on one of the tables or at the reception desk. Food needs to be left in a designated food cabinet that has a food delivery icon on it. Or you can also await your food when it arrives. The food cabinet is outside of our office, near our entrance door.

If your food leaves grease or spills in the cabinet, please clean it. We may charge you if your food delivery leaves a mess inside.

Access Cards and Fobs

Your West Quay Offices membership, Member key card, and fobs are non-transferable and are intended for the use of the person to whom they are allocated in your membership agreement only; they are not intended to provide access or use to other parties. If you lose or damage your key card, please notify reception as soon as possible. You may be charged a fee for a replacement key card. Replacement fees are displayed on the Member portal and mobile app.

You are not permitted to make copies of any keys, key cards, or other means of entry to any West Quay Offices space or lend, share, or transfer any keys or key cards to any third party unless authorized by us in advance.

Do not allow others to access restricted key card areas without swiping their own key cards. If someone follows you into West Quay Offices without swiping their key card, please request that they check in with reception or notify reception. If this is after business hours, please do not let anyone in with you to the office if you do not know this person.

High-consumption items

Persons using our space may not, without our prior approval, operate any equipment in our space that has a higher heat output or electrical consumption than in a typical office environment or places excessive strain on our electrical, IT, HVAC, or structural systems. Some examples of prohibited items include electric heaters, tower servers, UPS units larger than 1500 VA, ovens, extra halogen lights, etc.

Intended Use

You hereby agree that you will not use our work spaces, mailing address, or any other services for any unlawful, illegitimate, or fraudulent purposes or for any purpose prohibited by Canadian federal and/or provincial regulations. You further agree that any use of our spaces and services shall be in conformity with all applicable federal, provincial, and local laws.

We will cooperate with all local, provincial, and federal agencies and will share any and all information about you, the use of our spaces, and any services with such agencies upon request. You further acknowledge and agree that we may share any and all information about you and your use of our work spaces or any service with any third party upon being presented with a civil or criminal subpoena. You specifically indemnify us and hold harmless from any and all liability, claims, damages, losses, or causes of action arising from the release of information regarding you or your use of our spaces and address to any representative of a local, provincial, or federal agency.

Internet and Network

As hackers get smarter, the need to protect your digital assets and network devices is even greater. While providing IT security can be expensive, a significant breach costs an organization far more. Large breaches can jeopardize the health of a small business. During or after an incident.

West Quay Offices offer highly intelligent online security for your devices and data. We offer all-inclusive security already built-in when you bring your devices to West Quay Offices. Some of the advantages are:

• VLAN-isolated networks for your private offices
• Isolated networks where members cannot see each other’s devices
• Firewalls protect and eliminate any malicious activity, inside or out.
• Application protection at network level
• VPN and endpoint security on demand
• Static IPs dedicated your devices or switch on demand

Learn more about what West Quay Offices offers to you for cyber, IT and network security.

Network Security

For any person using the West Quay Offices wireless internet, such persons’ computers, tablets, mobile devices, and other electronic equipment must be:

• kept up-to-date with the latest software updates provided by the software vendor and
• kept clean of any malware, viruses, spyware, worms, Trojans, or anything that is designed to perform malicious, hostile, and/or intrusive operations.

West Quay Offices makes no representations whatsoever as to the security of the internet, wired or wireless telecommunications systems, or hosting services provided as part of the Services, or of any data or communications system or any information that you send through or place on it, and you have no expectation of privacy with respect to such systems. West Quay Offices is not responsible for any loss of data, information, business, goodwill, or otherwise as a result of such interruptions. You are responsible for protecting your own computers, devices, data, information, business, and goodwill from damage or interference, including but not limited to viruses or malware.

Acceptable Network Use Policy

You agree not to misuse the network in West Quay Offices or help anyone else to do so. For example, you must not even try to do any of the following using our wired or wireless network:

• probe, scan, or test the vulnerability of any system or network (if your business needs to be PCI-compliant, please consult us).
• breach or otherwise circumvent any security or authentication measures;
• interfere with or disrupt any user, host, or network, for example by sending a virus, overloading, flooding, spamming, or mail-bombing using our network;
• access, search, or create accounts by any means other than our publicly supported interfaces (for example, “scraping” or creating accounts in bulk);
• send unsolicited communications, promotions, advertisements, or spam;
• send altered, deceptive or false source-identifying information, including “spoofing” or “phishing”;
• publish, share, or store materials that constitute child sexually exploitative material (including material which may not be illegal child sexual abuse material but which nonetheless sexually exploits or promotes the sexual exploitation of minors), unlawful pornography, or are otherwise indecent;
• publish, share, or store content that contains or promotes extreme acts of violence or terrorist activity, including terror propaganda;
• advocate bigotry or hatred against any person or group of people based on their race, religion, ethnicity, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, disability, or impairment;
• violate the law in any way, including storing, publishing or sharing material that’s fraudulent, defamatory, or misleading, or that violates the intellectual property rights of others;
• violate the privacy or infringe the rights of others;
• download warez or copyrighted material;
• use of torrent websites, including hosting, seeding, and downloading.

If West Quay Offices suspects you have violated the Internet Policy, we will investigate and may institute legal action, immediately deactivate services to any account without prior notice to you, and cooperate with law enforcement authorities in bringing legal proceedings against violators. You agree to reasonably cooperate with West Quay Offices in all such actions. You agree to indemnify West Quay Offices for any damages to the West Quay Offices infrastructure or business caused by your violation of the Internet Policy.

LAN Network

Each private office, dedicated desks and large Meeting Rooms have their own Ethernet plugs where you can wire in and use high-speed fiber internet. Some offices may have more plugs, our general setup is that a VoIP Cisco phone is connected to the wall with an Ethernet cable and you are free to connect your computer to ethernet port on the back of the VoIP phone.

Connecting a Switch

If you have more desks, you may want to connect a switch to our LAN and distribute lines to more computers. You are free to do that. You may install managed or unmanaged switches of your own or we can provide an unmanaged switch for you free of charge during your rental.

Connecting your own Router

We do not recommend connecting to your own router. Technically, it will be double NAT connection, and you may have problems with your internet, connections, or accessing our devices inside our network (like printers, servers, etc…). We won’t be able to fix if any issues that arise with your connection or network and you may be blocked at some point by our firewalls as you will be using a different subnet provided by your router.

If you do not know what you are doing and you are connecting a home router to our network, it is best not to do it. We already provide and maintain a strong commercial level router that controls all our network. If you need a special setup, please contact us.

WiFi/Wireless Internet

West Quay Offices has 4 power access points around the premises and offers WiFi 7, WiFi 6, WiFi 5, WiFi 4, WiFi 2 using 2.4-GHz, 5-GHz, and 6-GHz bands. We use channel widths of 20-MHz, 40-MHz, 80 MHz, and 160-MHz. As we operate 5 APs, they use all 3 available channels on 2.4 GH, 4 channels on each 5 and 6 GHz, and they work in connection with each other. Learn more about our WiFi networks in here if you need.

You should not be broadcasting or using any of these channels on our work spaces. If you do so, your device may create interference and poor network performance for all members using our wireless networks, including yourself, even if you are using your own. We reserve right to block if any device found broadcasting wireless using these channels.

Private Offices have their own WiFi and VLAN channels

Each private office has their own isolated VLAN network and WiFi password to access internet. Password for it has been sent to contact owner when they signup.

Sharing WiFi internet access with others

You should never share your personal WiFi access codes (PIN number) or passwords with any other users or visitors. Everybody should use their own code for security and in order for our smart office services to work well. You will compromise security if you share your password or PIN number, as that device will be registered under your account and it will impersonate you and even unlock doors as well.

Proving WiFi internet access for your visitors

If you need internet access to your visitor, just register them on our members’ portal, our mobile application, or through our kiosk in reception, and they will get their own access code. Never share your own access codes with your visitors. It is a security risk for all of us.

If you do not know how to add visitors, please read our knowledge base article.

IT Services

We do not offer any IT services, such as troubleshooting or support for your own equipment, however, where possible, we will let you know if we can help you. We shall have no responsibility for any such requests, and you use such support at your own discretion.

This does not refer to services we provide, like connecting your computer to WiFi, ethernet or printer, etc where we will be happy to assist you.

Stolen Items

While you are at West Quay Offices, you are responsible for your personal property. West Quay Offices will not be responsible for any lost or stolen items.

We provide lockers for members, and private offices can be locked by their owners.

Discrimination and Harassment

Discrimination and harassment will not be tolerated. Specifically, West Quay Offices prohibits discrimination and/or harassment against any individual on our premises, including West Quay Offices personnel, members, vendors, and guests, because of that:

• individual’s gender,
• sexual orientation,
• marital or civil status,
• pregnancy (or pregnancy-related conditions),
• gender identity or expression,
• transgender status or gender reassignment,
• race,
• color,
• national origin or ancestry,
• citizenship,
• religion or religious beliefs,
• age,
• physical or mental disability,
• genetic information (including genetic testing and characteristics),
• military or veteran status,
• or any other grounds or characteristics protected under the law.

West Quay Offices takes any violations of this discrimination and harassment policy seriously and encourages reporting any violations. To report a violation, contact the Community team. If any Member, vendor, or guest is found to have violated this discrimination and harassment policy, West Quay Offices will take appropriate remedial action to address the conduct, up to and including, prohibiting the Member, vendor, or guest admission to our premises or immediately removing the offending Member, vendor, or guest from the premises.

OUR Community is a HATE FREE ZONE

Video Surveillance

Please be advised that for security reasons, we may, in our discretion, regularly record certain shared areas in our spaces via video.

We may collect information through the use of the video surveillance system, including but not limited to personal information such as photos and images of people who pass over the common
property.

We may collect information through the use of our computerized access system, including but not limited to personal information of you, your members, and visitors, such as the name of the person, email address, dates and times of access, and parts of the workspaces accessed.

We may use personal information collected by the video surveillance system and access system for security purposes as defined in our Privacy Policy, as amended or replaced.

Rest assured that this footage just stays in our office hardware and does not travel to any out-of-office cloud servers. All recordings are deleted after some time.

Children

At this time, we are not able to accommodate children. In instances of an emergency, we are accommodating for short durations in the workplace when a responsible parent is present at all times with them.

Our offices have a lot of high-tech stuff and are not built with the safety of children in mind.

Damages

The contract owner is responsible for any damages to our property incurred while using our work spaces for yourself, your employees, or your visitors.

Insurance

It is your responsibility to arrange insurance for your own property, which you may bring into West Quay Offices, and for your own liability to your employees and to third parties you may bring together.

West Quay Offices carries liability and business personal property insurance. However, you are strongly encouraged to carry an insurance policy to cover your equipment and personal property while using our premises. You waive any right of subrogation, right of recovery, or cause of action for any damage, theft, destruction, or loss of property, or any injury, including death, to the extent the same is insured against under any insurance policy that you may have.

No Dangerous Activities or Items

For the safety and enjoyment of all members of our Community, all members, guests, and others using our spaces shall act in a respectful manner in the space, use the space in a manner consistent with typical commercial office building usage, and shall not perform any activity or cause or permit anything that is reasonably likely to be disruptive or dangerous to us or any members, or our or their employees, guests, or property. The use of West Quay Offices to conduct or pursue any illegal or offensive activities is strictly prohibited.

Banned Materials and Equipment

Most materials and equipment are allowed in West Quay Offices. However, to protect the space and the safety of its members, members must not bring the following items into West Quay Offices:

• Weapons of any kind and any other offensive, dangerous, hazardous, inflammable, or explosive materials are strictly prohibited in West Quay Offices. If you become aware of a weapon in the West Quay Offices, notify reception.
• Explosives, explosive charges and related paraphernalia;
• Items requiring a license to operate or carry, including some radio equipment;
• Large quantities of combustibles, inflammable liquids or pressurised gases;
• Equipment or materials likely to cause injury or harm;
• Materials or substances banned in Canada;
• Stolen materials or equipment.

Alcohol and Substances

Alcoholic beverages, illegal substances, smoking, vaping, or open flames are not permitted on West Quay Offices premises. No group using our spaces may engage in any unlawful or illegal behaviour under any law of British Columbia or Canada, including those specified in the Criminal Code and under human rights legislation.

Bicycle storage

We have bicycle storage available free of charge to members on the first floor of the building. A key is required at our reception. If you are a Member, you are free to use this storage by requesting a copy of the key from our reception. The key must be returned to us at the end of your membership.

Bicycles are not permitted in the elevator, hallways or any other indoor common areas except the
underground parking facility. No bicycles are to be kept inside our working spaces. Bicycles
must enter or exit the building by way of the vehicle entry to the underground parking facility only.

Parking

We have reserved parking for members and guest parking for your visitors. 24/7 reserved parking can be purchased from our reception or online and will cost $250 per month. There is a $150 deposit charged for access to the parking gate, which will be returnable when you return the remote fob in its original shape.

• A maximum speed of 15 km/h will apply within the common property.
• Vehicles exceeding 4,000 kg. G.V.W. must not be parked or brought onto the common property without the consent of us, except when used in delivery to or removal from the premises.

Reserved Parking

If you have rented reserved parking from us, you will not:

• use any parking stall except one which has been specifically assigned to you,
• permit a parking stall to be used by anyone that is not on your contract agreement and listed as a Member in your team,
• carry out, or permit anyone to carry out on a parking stall, any oil changes, major repairs or
• adjustments to motor vehicles or other mechanical equipment on common property or on any limited common property, including the underground parking facility, except in the case of emergency. If this occurs, you must immediately, at your own expense, clean up any oil or other substance that spills or leaks from your or a team Member’s vehicle onto the common property or limited common property, regardless of how or when such spills or leaks occur or whether they are the result of an activity that is against the bylaws or not.
• You must also not park or store any vehicle unless you or your employee have obtained sufficient insurance for it.

Any vehicle that does not comply with the bylaws or rules at the parking contract holder’s expense or owner’s expense if the car is not identified.

Visitor Parking

• Your visitors can use visitor parking free of charge.
• Visitor parking shall be limited to a maximum duration of 2 hours.

Any vehicle found to be in violation may be towed by the strata corporation at the vehicle owner’s expense. West Quay Offices has no control on this.

Unsuitable Business Types

The businesses that aren’t a good fit for West Quay Offices would be retail, massage parlours, chiropractic, dentists, etc. Types of businesses that have frequent heavy traffic in and out of the space.

Other than these examples, these kinds of businesses are strictly not allowed by law in our spaces.

• an auction, bulk sale, liquidation sale, “going out of business” sale, or bankruptcy sale;
• an off-track betting establishment;
• an adult entertainment store, an adult book store, an adult magazine store, or store selling sex toys or displaying or renting sexually oriented goods or services;
• marijuana grow operation or production facility.

Late Night Policy

Late Working

West Quay Offices accessible to members who have 24/7 access. Private Offices and Unlimited VIP Coworking members that have 24/7 access can enter space anytime. Other type of members can enter during business hours/days and they need to leave space by 5 p.m.

If you have 24/7 access, there is no limitation on the time you can work in our spaces.

Late Visitors (Guests)

Non-Member visitors are not permitted on the premises after 8 P.M. If members are working collaboratively with non-members into the night, that is acceptable until than. Members working collaboratively late at night with non-members must take responsibility for the non-members, including ensuring the number of non-members does not exceed the number of members working and members need to accompany visitors at all times. All visitors entering our space must be registered through our members’ portal, mobile app or tablet in reception. This applies at all times but is particularly important at night.

Sleeping

Sleeping is not permitted in the space, regardless of time of day. While there is often a temptation to just put the head down to work overnight, “You don’t have to go home but you can’t stay here”.

Pet Policy

West Quay Offices is responsible for assuring the health and safety of all members. In keeping with this objective, West Quay Offices does not permit members to bring their household pets to work. Animals may pose a threat of infection and may cause allergic reactions in other members. The presence of animals, particularly dogs, may cause some members to feel threatened or distracted. In addition, West Quay Offices wishes to prevent pets from fouling the office space or damaging the company’s and its Member’s property.

Service Animals

A Member or visitor who requires the help of a service animal (as defined in section 1(1) of the Accessible Transportation for Persons with Disabilities Regulations) “a dog that has been individually trained by an organization or person specializing in service dog training to perform a task to assist a person with a disability with a need related to their disability. (chien d’assistance“) will be permitted to bring a service animal to the office, provided that the animal’s presence does not create a danger to others and does not impose an undue hardship upon us and all the businesses operating on our premises.

Such individuals:

1. Have a disability.
2. A service animal is a necessary accommodation for that disability.
3. A service animal is properly trained and certified in accordance with BC’s Guide and Service Dog Act.

An animal may be excluded from the office if it:

• causes any person to experience allergic reactions, fear, or any other physical or psychological discomfort;
• distracts any Member from their work; or
• reduces any Member’s productivity or quality of work.

Any individual with a grievance regarding an animal at the office should bring the matter to the attention of the owner’s immediate supervisor.

In addition, the following animals may not be brought to the workplace:

• sick animals;
• animals with fleas or any disease that is communicable to other animals in the office or to humans;
• animals that have not been properly vaccinated, or that have internal or external parasites;
• dogs that bark or behave aggressively; or animals that foul the inside or outside of the building.

Animals that have not been spayed or neutered will not be permitted to come to the office in season.

All dogs must be leashed at all times. All animals must be under the continuous, full control of their owners. They should be in the physical presence of the owner, in the owner’s office, or in the space around the owner’s desk at all times. Owners are expected to clean up, completely and immediately, after their animals.

Team paying members are responsible for their members, employees, or visitors who bring an animal to the office. They are completely and solely liable for any injuries or damage to personal property caused by the animal. Any repair, cleaning, or maintenance costs incurred by an animal will be charged in full to the contract owner.

If the service animal belongs to a Member and needs to come to our premises frequently, West Quay Offices may, at its discretion, require the animal owner to maintain a liability insurance policy covering damage or injuries caused by the animal while at the office. The company may specify minimum coverage amounts under such a policy, and may require the owner to pay for such coverage. West Quay Offices shall not be liable for the loss of, or injury to, any animal brought to the office.

The Golden Rule

There are a number of different aspects to Coworking etiquette, but it can really all be boiled down to the ‘Golden Rule’: treat others as you would like to be treated. If you use the shared space of a Coworking environment in a way that respects the personal and professional needs of everyone who uses it, you are going to find that it is a much more comfortable and productive place for you to work in.