One In Five Employees 'Hate Their Colleagues'

Research has found that six million UK workers and employees despise their colleagues, and almost two-thirds regularly gossip about fellow employees behind their backs. One in four admitted they complained about their colleagues when in the pub after work, whilst a third disliked their colleagues so much they wouldn't even consider socialising after work.

The survey of 2,000 people for OnePoll found Senior Management and bosses are the most disliked colleagues, and the industry in which most antipathy and dislike is found is media, followed by accounts, IT and sales.

The study also found women are more likely to talk behind their colleague's backs than men, with the typical female employee spending around 20 minutes a day moaning about someone they work with, either by email or by instant messaging online.

Two out of five women said they had sent nasty messages in the past seven days compared to one in five men.

A spokesman for OnePoll said:

“Workers are spending longer and longer in each other's company as workloads increase. That leads to added tension. People who are in positions of authority are bound to end up as victims of back-stabbing. But workers should be careful, as one in 20 have sent an inappropriate message to the wrong person.”