Tired at work? You’re probably taking a break on Facebook

It's not just you — everyone checks Facebook at work. 

A bit more than three-quarters of all workers use social media while at work regardless of any rules or regulations put in place by their employers, according to a new study by the Pew Research Center.

Most often, people are taking a mental break from work (34 percent) or connecting with friends and family members (27 percent).  

“These data show that the rise of social media has added a new layer of job-related activity for many workers as well as new opportunities to ‘escape’ the job when they want to take a break,” said Kenneth Olmstead, a research associate at Pew Research Center and an author of the report. 

 Previous reports have suggested that the U.S. misses out on hundreds of billions of dollars in productivity each year as workers take time to post their thoughts to Twitter or a throw-back Thursday to Instagram. 
But in addition to serving as a bit of a mental rest, social media is also becoming a place that can improve workers and the workplace — or perhaps more worrisome, further blur the lines between an employee's work and private lives.

“Social networking platforms provide workers new ways to learn job-related skills and new ways for them to socialize even when they are on the job. In effect, social media has made the once solid boundary between work and leisure a lot more permeable," Olmstead noted.

Facebook in particular has been exploring whether its popularity in the workplace could translate into a new business opportunity. Facebook has been experimenting with a professional version — aptly named "Facebook at Work" — that has been in development since at least November 2014.

The survey also found that 51 percent of full- and part-time workers say their workplace has a policy about social media during office hours. 

"These findings also highlight some of the challenges faced by organizations and workers, as we move into an era where social media is increasingly integrated into our daily communication practices inside and outside the workplace,” said Nicole B. Ellison, an associate professor at the University of Michigan's School of Information and a researcher on the report, in a release.

“For instance, how can we use social media to learn more about our colleagues as individuals and friends, yet retain control over aspects of our personal lives that we would prefer to keep private?" she continued.

The report found that 23 percent of people between 18 and 29 said they discovered information on social media that improved their professional opinion of a colleague compared to only 12 percent of workers ages 30 to 49, and 9 percent of workers ages 50 to 64.

It might surprise millennials, but a full 25 percent of those surveyed reported that they never use the internet for work-related tasks, and 17 percent hardly ever do. 

Pew researchers surveyed more than 2,000 American adults over the age of 18 by phone.

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