Help morale at work by being courteous in the kitchen

Smashing someone else's lunch in the refrigerator to make way for your own. Leaving your dishes in the sink. Letting your lunch bubble over in the microwave.

While it may be OK to do these things in your house, it's bad form in the workplace, etiquette experts say. After all, the office kitchen is a communal space.

But if there's a slob or a food stealer among your ranks, don't despair. Sometimes all it takes are some firm kitchen rules.

For the refrigerator, put someone in charge, said Jodi R.R. Smith, owner of Mannersmith Etiquette Consulting. That doesn't mean the person has to do the cleaning, but he or she can make sure it's done, whether it's creating the cleaning schedule or enforcing the rules.

Be courteous. Don't fill the fridge, freezer and pantry with so much food, no one else has space, said Lizzie Post, author of "How Do You Work This Life Thing?" and Emily Post's great-great granddaughter. And don't smash someone else's sandwich to make sure your Tupperware fit, Post said. Reorganize a bit to make way for your containers.

Label all the food, it helps coworkers know who to ask if they want something that's yours, Post said. If it has no label, ask around to see if you can find out who it belongs to and then ask the person if you can have it, Post said. This goes for condiments as well, whether it's mustard or skim milk for coffee.

Be responsible. If you know you are going on vacation for a week, do something with your food, whether it's taking it home or giving it away, Post said.

If you're using the microwave, be conscious of smells and spilling. Many offices have banned microwave popcorn because of the smell and the propensity to set off the smoke alarm, Smith said. When you are done microwaving, check to make sure nothing spilled. If food seeped or exploded out, clean it up immediately.

"It is much easier to do when the food is warm than after it cools and bakes to the walls," she said.

Smith also said cleaning dishes immediately is common curtesy. Do not leave dishes in the sink unless there is someone hired to wash dishes, she said. The rule applies to coffee mugs as well. Wash your dish after using it and put it in the drying rack immediately.

If someone is stealing food, talk to the boss and then bring it up at a staff meeting, Smith said. Say something like, "Someone is stealing my lunch, and I'm going to ask that it's stopped."

A sign on the fridge or bringing a personal cooler may be other steps to take.

"It would be a shame if it comes to that," Whitmore said. "Because that's not the point of having a community refrigerator."

Or get creative, Smith said. Make a decoy sandwich like egg salad and peanut butter.