Work And Friendship

A full time employee in the UK will spend around 37 hours a week with their colleagues, but how do we feel when it comes to spending time socialising with them outside the workplace? A recent survey from Pall Mall Estates that surveyed 600 UK residents showed that 55% enjoyed spending time with colleagues, so they could get to know them better. The survey showed that most people preferred to socialise during work hours rather than evenings or weekends.

Friends in the workplace

Most people consider people they work with to be just colleagues rather than friends but socialising with colleagues can be beneficial for our wellbeing. Having strong relationships in the workplace makes people less stressed, healthier and happier. Good work relationships can have a positive effect on you, and it’s always useful having a friend in the office that you can turn to when there’s an issue or you need to vent. The survey showed that the top three industries for being sociable were Processing, Manufacturing and Construction.

Keeping to yourself

Making friends in the workplace can seem very daunting for some workers, and some people prefer to keep to themselves. There are many reasons why a worker may not want to mingle with their colleagues after 5 o’clock, whether it’s because they have to go home to take care of their family, they have social anxiety, or they simply don’t want to interact with people they don’t like. Keeping work and friendship separate is completely fine.

Whether you like to make friends in work and do after work activities together, or you like to head home on a Friday evening and not think of work again until Monday morning, it’s important to remember that strong relationships in the workplace is going to be beneficial for you professionally and personally.