Benefits February 12, 2009

Love is in the Air – at the Office Too

February 12, 2009 (PLANSPONSOR.com) - One of the places where love is increasingly in the air these days is apparently the workplace.
Reported by

In fact, while 40% of recent survey respondents have dated a co-worker, 31% actually married their workplace paramour, a CareerBuilder.com news release indicated. Some 18% of those firing or receiving cupid’s arrows from a co-worker had done so twice.

The announcement said 10% of workers would like to date a colleague, with more men (14%) than women (5%) reporting they would like to do so.

Some 34% admitted they had gone out with a potential paramour with a higher company rank, including 42% who have dated their boss (female workers more so than males, at 47% and 38%, respectively).

“Employees spend many hours interacting with co-workers, so it’s not unusual for romances to spark,” said Rosemary Haefner, Vice President of Human Resources at CareerBuilder.com. “While workplace relationships may be more accepted these days, it’s still important for workers to keep it professional and not let their relationship impact their work.”

Romantic Venues

The survey said 12% had romances that were kicked off when they ran into the co-worker outside of the office. Other venues included:

  • Working late at the office (11%)
  • Happy hour (10%)
  • At lunch (10%)

They may have had to keep their romance on the down low, but that apparently didn’t mean the interactions had no romantic flourishes. Asked about the most romantic things they have done in the office, respondents listed (in order):

  • had a drink together up on the roof.
  • danced to the elevator music in the hallway.
  • ate a late night picnic with candles after everyone had left.
  • after a meeting, picked up my girlfriend in a limo and proposed to her.
  • left each other love post-it notes.

This survey was conducted online within the U.S. by Harris Interactive among 8,038 employees (employed full-time; not self-employed; non-government) ages 18 and over between November 12 and December 1, 2008.

A PLANSPONSOR survey several years ago found even more office romances going on, with nearly 80% reporting they had had at least one such entanglement. A significant minority had had more than one (see SURVEY SAYS: Have You Had A Workplace Romance? ).

«