Love Blooms in a Cubicle

Just in time for Valentine’s Day, a CareerBuilder survey found 39% of workers have dated a coworker at least once during their careers. Seventeen percent of respondents have dated coworkers at least twice.   

Although office romance can have its share of drama, not all relationships end by cinematically throwing papers in a lover’s face: 30% of those who have dated a coworker said the romance led to marriage.   

Most office relationships tend to develop between peers, with 20% saying they are more attracted to people who have a similar job. Twenty-nine percent of respondents, however, said they prefer to date someone above them in the company hierarchy, and 16% admitted to dating their boss. Women were more likely to date someone higher up in their organization–38% compared with 21% of men.  

The number of office romances reported varies among industries, with the top five being leisure and hospitality; information technology; finance; health care; and professional and business services.   

Most workers who have had office romances said they were open about their dating situation, but 35% said they had to keep the relationship secret.