Three-quarters of staff members in the UK exploit their employer by taking liberties while at work, research has revealed.
More than 54% of people questioned in a survey by independent online HR consultancy firm www.Reabur.com admitted they take liberties while doing their job, and an additional 21% said they ‘occasionally’ do so.
This leaves just a quarter of workers who said they do not unfairly take advantage of their employer in the workplace.
The poll provided its respondents with a list of activities that they considered to be examples of taking liberties while at work. They were then asked to select the activities that they have done in the past.
The survey found that one of the most common acts was ‘over use of the company phone for personal calls’ with more than half of those who said they take liberties saying that this was something they did.
Kirsty Burgess, co-managing director of Reabur.com, said: “Employers are usually always aware of what their staff are doing, even if the member of staff thinks otherwise. It would be better to approach the management with the issues and see if they can be addressed, rather than taking liberties and being deceitful.”
Copyright © Press Association 2011
