More than One Third of Canadian Workers Have Dated a Co-Worker, Finds CareerBuilder.ca Survey

Twenty Percent of Office Romances Involve Someone Who is Already Married

TORONTO, Feb. 13, 2014 /CNW/ - Looking for a Valentine? The office might be a good place to start, according to a new CareerBuilder.ca survey. CareerBuilder's annual survey on office romance found more than one-third (35 percent) of Canadian workers have dated someone who worked for the same company, and 15 percent say they have done so more than once.

The national survey was conducted online by Harris Poll on behalf of CareerBuilder.ca from November 6 to December 2, 2013, and included a representative sample of 426 Canadian full-time, private sector employees across industries and company sizes.

Marriage
That budding office romance may even lead all the way to the altar, or possibly divorce court. Of those who dated someone from the office, one quarter (25 percent) ended up marrying their office sweetheart, while 17 percent admitted that either they were married or the co-worker they dated was married at the time of the affair.

Dating Up
One in five (22 percent) workers who have dated a coworker say their office sweetheart was at a higher level in the organization than they were - some even dated the boss (12 percent). However, only 2 percent of employees who have had an office relationship say the relationship helped them progress in their career.

We'll Always Have the Lunchroom (or) Come Here Often?
Office romances most often start by coworkers running into each other outside of work (14 percent), at lunch (14 percent) or late nights at work (11 percent). Some other situations that led to romance include love at first sight (8 percent), happy hour after work (6 percent), and at a company holiday party (3 percent).

Our Little Secret
Most employees (66 percent) who have dated someone from their office say they did not have to keep the relationship a secret. Sixteen percent say they admitted that they were dating when they ran into another coworker outside of work, while 11 percent in the same situation covered up their romantic relationship.

Tips for Navigating a Workplace Romance

• Research – Many companies will already have policies regarding office relationships already on the books. If you're considering entering romantic relationship with a coworker, consult HR or get ahold of the policy book.
• Proceed with Caution – Some romances lead into marriage, but others lead into disaster. Seven percent of workers having to leave their jobs because of an office romance. Take the time to get to know someone first and carefully weigh risks and benefits.
• Compartmentalize – Keep your work life separate from your home life. Avoid showing PDA in the office. By the same token, personal disagreements should remain at home so as not to involve other co-workers.
• Think Before You Post – Be careful what you post on social media. You can end up outing your relationship before you're ready to discuss it.
• Don't Date the Boss – Don't get involved with a direct report. Not only can it lead to termination of employment, it can also create moral issues for other employees. If there is a mutual interest between a boss and direct report, one of you should look at moving to another department.

Survey Methodology
This survey was conducted online within Canada by Harris Poll on behalf of CareerBuilder.ca among 426 workers (employed full-time, not self-employed, non-government) ages 18 and over between November 6 and December 2, 2013 (percentages for some questions are based on a subset, based on their responses to certain questions). With a pure probability sample of 426, one could say with a 95 percent probability that the overall results have a sampling error of +/- 4.75 percentage points. Sampling error for data from sub-samples is higher and varies.

About CareerBuilder®
CareerBuilder.ca is a leading job site in Canada. Owned by Gannett Co., Inc. (NYSE: GCI), the Tribune Company, The McClatchy Company (NYSE: MNI), CareerBuilder.ca powers the career centers for more than 250 Canadian partners that reach national, local, industry and niche audiences. Job seekers visit CareerBuilder.ca every month to search for opportunities by industry, location, company and job type, sign up for automatic e-mail job alerts, and get advice on job hunting and career management. For more information about CareerBuilder.ca products and services, visit http://www.careerbuilder.ca.

Media Contact
Michael Erwin
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SOURCE: CareerBuilder.ca