|
Internet
addicts
in
the
workplace
go
unnoticed
By John
Burke • Bankrate.com
 Workers
who
peruse
the
Internet
on
company
time
apparently
are
doing
a
good
job
of
keeping
their
surfing
secret
from
the
boss.
Twenty-five
percent
of
employees
say
they
are
addicted
or
compulsive
in
Internet
use
at
work.
Only
8
percent
of
employers,
however,
are
aware
of
workplace
cyber-addiction,
according
to
a
survey
commissioned
by
Websense
Inc.
Workers
spend
8.3
hours
a
week
surfing
non-work-related
sites,
according
to
the
Harris
Interactive
survey
of
305
employees
and
250
human
resources
managers.
Where
are
those
erstwhile
work
hours
spent?
On
Web
pages
where
workers
can
keep
up
with
what's
happening
or
where
they
can
spend
some
of
the
money
they're
supposed
to
be
earning.
The
most
popular
sites
accessed
from
work
are
news
pages,
with
67
percent
of
employees
clicking
there.
Another
37
percent
admit
to
visiting
shopping
and
auction
sites.
Only
two
percent
of
the
survey
respondents
reported
logging
onto
pornography
and
gambling
sites
from
work.
"Studies
have
shown
that
from
25
percent
to
50
percent
of
cyber-addiction
is
occurring
at
the
workplace,"
says
Dr.
Marlene
Maheu,
an
Internet
addiction
expert
and
CEO
of
Pioneer
Development
Resources
Inc.
"That
means
employees
are
getting
paid
to
participate
in
activities
that
are
not
work-related."
What the boss doesn't know ...
Apparently, there are a lot of workers not putting in full
9-to-5 shifts. Neilsen reports that this past August, about 46 million
people in the United States went online for personal reasons from
work, according to eMarketer.com.
Few
employers
say
they
view
employees,
either
current
or
former,
as
compulsive
or
Internet
addicted.
But
to
keep
workers
focused
on
the
job,
some
employers
do
take
counter
measures.
The
report
found
78
percent
of
companies
block
workplace
access
to
pornography,
20
percent
block
shopping
sites,
4
percent
block
gambling
sites
and
4
percent
block
news
sites.
And not everyone is concerned that Internet usage
at work is detrimental to the bottom line. A 2001 survey found nearly
all employees (97 percent) who surf the Web at work say it does
not have a negative impact on their duties. In fact, nearly
70 percent of the participants in the Internet Usage in the Workplace
survey conducted by Xylo Inc. said surfing the Net at work actually
boosts their productivity.
Are any of your employees addicted to the Internet?
Do you know how much personal time your employees spend online on
the company dime?
-- Posted: Nov. 15, 2002
|
