Okay, I need more than 5 votes here! It can't possibly be that hard a question, now, can it?

I will post the national average on Monday. I was very surprised.

My workplace has cameras! Yikes!

The following is not a word post!

OK, why "Absolutely!" and "Never!" and not such "Yes." or "No."?

Why is "workplace" qualified before the poll choices, but "sex" is kind of qualified within one of the choices?

And, finally, "workplace" is once more qualified in the final choice.

To my way of thinking the poll should have been more like this:

Have you ever had sex in the workplace? Now, having sex involves X, Y, and Z. And the workplace must be outside your home.

Yes.

No.

N/A, i.e., unemployed or retired.

OK, first off, it wasn't really a poll, it was a joke, kinda. This is what ticked me off about the other polls recently. Say you are polling a student at university. The student is a TA in a class. Later that day the TA leaves with another student, and they have sex in the TA's dorm room. They're still on campus. Is this the workplace? (I guess that this would be covered by the outside of your home qualification.) How about if they leave the classroom and duck into a janitor's closet next door? You get the idea.

hehehe

Of course, there's also the question of whether or not the sex was good. That opens another whole discussion, doesn't it?

OK, first off, it wasn't really a poll, it was a joke, kinda. This is what ticked me off about the other polls recently. Say you are polling a student at university

jheem, please note, I edited the poll, just for you!

Honestly, I have never thought of these polls in such serious terms, and I really wasn't planning to publish the results.

Now, the edited version is precisely as I heard the poll reported, except they didn't have choice 3 or 4, which I think are legitimate choices. I had thought I had sorted out "workplace" in the question, but jheem brought up a good point.

I did learn one thing. You can't vote twice in the system. I wanted to change my vote and couldn't figure out how to so I tried to vote twice.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: Kalleh,

Ta Dah!!! Now for the wordcraft percentage of workplace sex, as compared to the national average.

The national average (in the U.S.) is 12%, compared to our 22%. So, I guess the question is...were either (or both) of those 2 people who voted "yes" from outside the U.S.?

I actually am surprised, given the persnickety replies to CJ's poll ("I won't take the poll because of the excess wording in the questions!"), that no one here chose C or D. In fact, I had wanted to change my answer to C because I think that is a very legitimate concern. While my workplace is clear to me (apparently jheem has more questions on that than I do), the term "sex" isn't clear across the English-speaking world, I don't think. I thought Clinton had made a good point on that in his hearings. I hate to get into detail, given recent criticisms of our site, but, being a literalist, I take "having sex" only to mean "sexual intercourse." Now, of course, not all agree with me, given the outcry toward Clinton, who, in my opinion, "did not have sex with that woman!"

Quote "...The national average (in the U.S.) is 12%, compared to our 22%..."

I wonder what the national percentage of liars is in the USA. I find that statistic of only around one person in ten having had a workplace fling somewhat difficult to swallow.

Remember, we are talking about men as well as women here and, even accepting Kalleh's rather narrow classification of sex, I would find that very hard to believe.

I know it was posted as a joke, but someone has to mention it; a poll based on nine replies is a nonsense. The size of the sample is just too small. If we'd had one more vote for "Yes" the percentage would have gone way up to 30%, or if they'd voted "No" it would have gone down to 20%.

It is rather a disappointment that so few wordcrafters actually answered. The forum stats show that there are around 30 people who visit us regularly, check out most threads, and do more than make the occasional post. This thread shows (at the moment) 90 page views, which means that either the peple who voted have viewed it an average of 10 times each, or that others have viewed it but didn't vote for some reason.

I agree completely with you, arnie, on both your comments. Surely a response of 9 means nothing. And, it irritates me no end that people don't vote on our polls.

I find that statistic of only around one person in ten having had a workplace fling somewhat difficult to swallow.

I don't agree with Richard, though. It would be rather hard to have sex in most workplaces, without bosses finding out. Surely mine would be impossible without being found out...and promptly fired. I completely agree with the 12% figure.

One of the things that often surprises those who work in large organisations is that most people - don't.

In England over 90% of businesses are SMEs (Small and Medium-sized Enterprises). The possibilities for extra-curricular activities are probably better in such environments than they are in large organisations with their security teams, CCTV, heirachical management structures and other barriers to fraternisation.

I know, from my personal experience in management in such businesses, that liaisons are common enough.

And, incidentally, if it didn't affect the work of those involved, I would not consider it a disciplinary matter - or, in fact, even my business.

But Richard, the way I'm reading the poll isn't just that there is an office "fling" but that the couple actually copulates in the office. Going out with someone from work is quite a viable option. Doing it on the desk is often a different story.

Quote "...Doing it on the desk is often a different story...."

Indeed. And a lot more fun...

And, incidentally, if it didn't affect the work of those involved, I would not consider it a disciplinary matter - or, in fact, even my business.

Richard, I am curious. Is this your personal view or all of England's? I don't think many employers here would agree with you in that. I remember in my first semester of teaching nursing students, several years ago, I found my student in bed with her patient. I flunked her out of the program.

Interesting subtleties here in the use of language.

The original question was "Have you ever had sex in the workplace?" CW reads that as performing the act in the workplace (regardless of with whom; your partner may be a non-employee). So do I and (I think) Kalleh.

Richard seems to have understood "sex in the workplace" as meaning "sex with a co-worker" (regardless of where the act takes place). [He spoke of "a workplace fling"] So too in parts of his next post ("heirachical management structures"; "barriers to fraternisation"). But other parts ("security teams, CCTV") focus on location rather than co-workership.

This simply points out the inherent ambiguity of poll-questions. After all, even if the phrasing of the question is made excruciatingly precise, the person being polled is not going to read it in excruciating detail.

---

Another point: Richard, you said (and I fully agree), "I would not consider it a disciplinary matter." It was quite subtle of you that, though you've no doubt had to deal with the situation, you elected to use the subjunctive "would not" rather than "do not". Well spoken!

Quote "...Richard, I am curious. Is this your personal view or all of England's?..."

I can't speak for all 50-odd million of us, but I suspect that in this, as in other sexual matters, we are less prudish than are you. (compare, for example, the recent incident when some pop star exposed one of her breasts on stage. The US media censored the images; the British media did not).

My criterion would be, is this a work-related matter? If they are doing what they do in working hours then there's an issue about misuse of employer's time - but outside working hours, where's the problem? Remember, to sack someone is a very severe sanction for doing only what we all do sometime or other.

In the case of the nurse/patient there's also the question of medical ethics and I confess I don't know enough about the rules. As I understand it, if a doctors treats his mistress, that's fine; if a doctor beds his patient, that's a disciplinary matter.

I think it's very important to look at the whole situation - the act, the situation and the consequences before invoking severe penalties such as dismissal.

"Have you ever had sex in the workplace?"

Oh yeah. Some bosses will screw you over at every performance review.