THE best part of the morning is walking into the office and smelling a fresh pot of coffee in the break room.

As workers sit down at their desks to begin their day, a steaming cup of joe sits in front of their computers. Yawns start to disappear and eyes open a little wider with each sip.

In honour of the recent National Coffee Day (September 29), workers discuss the benefits of their daily cup of joe. Coffee helps maintain productivity and energy in America’s workforce, especially for the younger workers, according to a survey by CareerBuilder and Dunkin’ Donuts that questioned 3,661 US workers. Thirty-two per cent of respondents need coffee to make it through the workday, while 43 per cent of coffee drinkers get less work done when they don’t have coffee at the office.

These industries need coffee in order to stay productive at the workplace: nurses, physicians, hotel workers, designers/architects, financial/insurance sales representatives, food preparers, engineers, teachers, marketing/PR professionals, scientists, machine operators, and government workers.

When it comes to getting their daily coffee, a majority of workers will not travel far for their two or more cups per workday — 75 per cent of respondents only go a quarter of a mile or less for their cup of joe. Coffee drinkers tend to be among the younger generation and need their daily fix to “perk up”.

“Today’s workforce is working longer hours and shouldering heavier workloads,” says Richard Castellini, CareerBuilder’s chief marketing officer. “The survey shows having an extra energy boost in the morning and throughout the day may be helping productivity levels.”

Managers should be happy when refilling the office’s coffee supply — they know their workers are staying awake and getting that extra boost during the day.