Nearly half of UK employees say they’re more likely to try and help their employers save money in light of the current economic crisis, according to new research from the Carbon Trust.

Forty-six percent of employees surveyed said they’re increasingly willing to help their firms save money, while 78 percent said they are more interested in improving energy efficiency to cut business costs, the survey found.

The Carbon Trust commissioned the study as part of its campaign to help organisations save at least £1 million a day by cutting energy consumption.

While employees say they’re feeling more personally responsible, many believe their co-workers aren’t showing the same interest. Two-thirds of those surveyed say their colleagues need to make a greater effort to save money in the workplace, and 82 percent say they regularly or occasionally see co-workers wasting energy on the job.

Employers themselves could also do better, the survey found. Forty-eight percent of employees say they would do more to save money if their firms let them know what actions they could take, and 42 percent said they’d be more motivated if only their employers simply asked for help.

“In this current climate, employers are being forced to make some difficult and at times, painful decisions in order to drive down costs,” said Hugh Jones, Solutions Director at the Carbon Trust. “However, as our survey reveals, employees want to do their bit and are increasingly seeing saving money around the workplace as part of their responsibility too.  This could help most businesses save up to 20 percent  on energy bills through low cost or no cost action on energy efficiency.”

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