Australians who admit to shopping online at work are spending an average of almost two hours a week doing so.
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The figure, from a survey commissioned by comparison site finder.com.au, suggests 36 per cent of Australians use online retail therapy to procrastinate when at work, with Gen Y and Baby Boomers the worst culprits.
"Everyone's guilty of a little bit of online shopping at work, what we don't realise is how much these hours add up," said Finder money expert Bessie Hassan.
The survey comprised 2010 respondents Australia wide (52 per cent female and 48 per cent male), and was made up of 31 per cent Baby Boomers, 35 per cent Gen X and 34 per cent Gen Y.
Of those who fessed up, half admitted to shopping for up to two hours while eight per cent admitted to doing so for five hours or more.
Across Australia, Victorians (62 per cent) are the most likely to admit to shopping when at work, while Tasmanians fall at the opposite end of the spectrum (48 per cent).
"There's become a blurring of lines between work and personal life, with many Aussies taking work home with them," Ms Hassan said, pointing to many Australians who see work as "an extension" of their home life.
"The other side of this dilemma means that employees are becoming more and more comfortable with doing things they would usually do in their free time, in the workplace."
Andrew Morris, director of recruitment agency Robert Half Australia, also pointed to increasingly flexible workplaces.
"Australian employers understand how hectic their employees' schedules can be and are allowing some flexibility with their time. As part of companies' increased efforts towards more work-life balance, most employers understand the need to visit websites for personal reasons, such as online shopping websites."
However, he said individual workers needed to "familiarise themselves with their company's policy towards surfing online for personal reasons, such as online shopping, as some firms do not allow it or have clear policies."
A US survey in 2015 by job site CareerBuilder of 2326 managers revealed 28 per cent had fired someone for using the internet for "non-work-related activity" up from 24 per cent the previous year.
Psychologist and managing director of SACS Consulting Andrew Marty said procrastination in the work place is not happening more, it is merely taking on a new form.
"Research undertaken for decades shows this type of distraction behaviour has always been an issue," he said.
"It's just that before we had online shopping, people did it in different ways; having a chat, or going out for a smoke."
He said some research suggests procrastination is happening, because jobs are more easily scrutinised today.
"With the advent of a technological world it's harder to hide unproductivity. I am not surprised to hear some employees are spending two hours a week. But I would say 20 years ago they were probably just standing around the water cooler too long."
