Men at Work: Males More Likely Than Females to Play Cupid
SnagAJob.com survey finds one in four men have played matchmaker for a colleagueRICHMOND, Va., Feb. 4, 2008 - Single folks, take notice. The love of your life may be sitting in a cubicle near you. And, believe it or not, a male co-worker may be the one likely to play Cupid for you, according to a recent survey.
One in four males said they have tried to set up a match for a fellow co-worker, according to an online poll at SnagAJob.com, the nation’s No. 1 source for hourly employment. Of the 25 percent of males who have anointed themselves a workplace Cupid at least once, 18 percent of them said they have helped make a “love connection,” while 7 percent admitted that their well-intentioned match “fizzled.”
Even so, men are giving matchmaking a greater try than their women colleagues. One in five women surveyed (21 percent) said they’ve ever attempted to play Cupid on the job, 16 percent noting that they’ve succeeded in making a “love connection” and 5 percent saying that the match they brokered “fizzled.”
“We might have thought that men’s extracurricular activities at work would include fantasy football trades or circulating the latest YouTube laugh, but who knew we should add matchmaker to the list?” said Shawn Boyer, CEO of SnagAJob.com. “There are more men acting like Chuck Woolery than we might have suspected, which could be related to the amount of time we spend with our colleagues. Over time, we know them pretty well, and we just can’t risk the urge to suggest a date to those who are available.”
According to statistics from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, any workplace Cupid – male or female – may need a lot of arrows. The BLS reports that there are 63.4 million employed singles in the workforce, representing nearly 44 percent of employed Americans.
The good news for single folks? Not only are there many of you circulating in the working world, but the BLS also reports that the average weekly workweek is 33.8 hours, conceivably plenty of time to see if your potential mate is indeed a colleague – with or without a strike from the resident workplace Cupid.
A few words of caution, though:
“While you should check with your company’s specific policy, it’s generally OK for single folks to date a colleague,” Boyer says. “But, you should steer clear of a personal relationship with your boss or supervisor. Love and performance reviews just don’t mix. And, if you’re dating a co-worker, work is still your first priority when you’re on the clock.”
The non-scientific poll was conducted at SnagAJob.com between Jan. 9 and Jan. 29, 2008, with responses from 1,117 men and 1,898 women.