A new survey by the Spherion Corporation has revealed that 19 percent of workers in the US have admitted taking office supplies for personal use in the past year. Of those who admit taking pens and other items from work, only 22 percent felt guilty or regretted doing it, despite 74 percent of workers feeling that it is wrong to do so.

 

The reasons workers give for taking office supplies were:
– 42 percent - I needed them.
– 33 percent - Boss or office manager said it was okay.
– 18 percent - Company will never miss them.

 

Most common types of office supplies stolen:

– 66 percent of workers admit taking pens, pencils or rulers.
– 57 percent admit taking paper, Post-It notes or file folders.
– 11 percent of workers admit taking office calculators, staplers or tape dispensers.
– 8 percent of workers admit taking expensive items such as cell phones, PDAs and laptop computers.

 

According to the survey, male workers are more likely to have taken office supplies than their female counterparts (20 percent to 17 percent).