Washington, Nov 29 (ANI): Employees spending time shopping online at work can be frustrating for employers, but an expert suggests that a little time out from work might not affect workers’ performances as believed by bosses.

“When you spend over 40 hours a week at work, it’s no surprise that employees turn to their office computers to get some holiday shopping done,” said Dr Claire Simmers, Ph.D., co-author of the study.

She believes instead of focusing on workers shopping on the company’s dime, employers should turn their attention to performance outcomes.

“We’ve got to get away from basing performance on those eight hours,” said Simmers.

“If an employee spends an hour surfing the Net, but an entire weekend working on a report, there should be trust that both are equally benefiting from this relationship,” she added.

Simmers said that all employers need to accept that their workforce might also use their personal cell phones and/or PDA’s to shop for gifts.

“With mobile technology, it’s a whole new ballgame,” she said.

“Instead of holiday shopping on the company computer, many employees will use their personal technology to shop for gifts. For an employer to police that kind of activity is nearly impossible,” she added. (ANI)