Cyber-slacking, or cyber-bludging as it is known in
Australia, describes the latest time-wasting activity: using the internet
at work for your own private purposes.
In Australia, an internet soft-ware company called Landvision has
done some research on the level of cyber-bludging. The company is
selling software which can control use of the internet in company
time, so it is not surprising it wants to publicise the problem.
However, Chris Hoyniman of Landvision says they employed an independent
company to do the research and it found most employees with access
to the internet were using it for personal and not work purposes:
"It ranges from entertainment to on-line banking, employment sites
- people using the internet to find their next job. Personal investing,
health and fitness, those sorts of things.
"On-line banking is something we encourage people to do at any
hour and we would advise employers here in Australia that it would
be to their benefit to allow that as well."
On-line stock trading might not be to the organisation’s
benefit, particularly in the employee is very distracted about
their stocks going down instead of concentrating on the job.
Chris
Hoyniman
"We have looked at it from a perspective of Australia’s
gross domestic product which, based on the number of hours of workers
with access to the internet, is something like 3.6 hours, so when
we look at say 50 per cent, over 40 working weeks - it is like a two-week
cyber holiday, and it is potentially costing the country something
like A$22.5 billion annually.
"From an employer viewpoint, based on those same numbers, it is
about A$5.8 billion dollars in wages based on the average Australian
wage."
Cyber-slacking costs Australian companies almost A$6 billion
in wages as workers take the equivalent of a two-week cyber-holiday.
Chris
Hoyniman
