Study Says Most Employers Condone Some Web Surfing

A new survey conducted by New York-based Vault.com Inc. found that 82% of employers accept the notion that employees will surf non-work-related Web sites at some point during the workday. Vault.com surveyed more than 1,400 employers and asked them what types of sites they see as acceptable for their employees to visit. Of the 82% that condone Web surfing in the office, 74.1% believe that news-oriented Web sites are acceptable for employees to visit, and 48.5% permit visits to stock sites. Also deemed acceptable to visit: message boards, 31.9%; travel sites, 21.3%; retail, 18%; and entertainment, 13.5%. More research on Internet use in the workplace is available in the Vault.com Survey of Internet Use in the Workplace. The 34-page study covers topics ranging from an employer's right to monitor employee's Web use to the Internet's effect on productivity.