You may not love your job, but what about loving someone you work with? According to a new survey from an online career provider, illicit love is often in the air at your office - and you probably know about it.

Vault.com's annual survey of the chance for romance at your plants shows at least 82 per cent of all employees are aware of a relationship between people they work with. And 40 per cent know that someone they toil next to is either cheating on their significant other with an office mate or strayed during a business trip, but don't say anything.

"We all knew her husband, and it made us extremely uncomfortable," one person who took part in the research admits.

"It's equal opportunity," adds another. "I would call it an even mix of male to female cheaters."

It makes perfect sense that the workplace would also serve as a meeting place. Most of us spend almost as much time at the office - if not more - than we do at home or out socializing. And from such close quarters does a different kind of closeness loom.

A good 50 per cent were able to cite instances where the hook-ups resulted in a marriage and while 46 per cent have had their own office trysts, just 23 per cent will admit it actually went a lot farther than simple flirting or a few dates.

Many confessed to using broom closets, a break room, an unused stairwell, the parking lot or even a men's or ladies' restroom for a brief physical encounter. And some actually took place in their boss's office. Just 3 per cent say they've actually been caught in the act. We'd love to hear those explanations. 

But like the fine line between love and hate, there's a dark side to all this. Nearly half of those asked said they'd been the object of unwanted attention on the job and that made them feel uncomfortable.

And then there's the issue of office break-ups and how hard it is to stay in a job alongside someone you no longer care for. Many employers now have policies designed to prohibit such liaisons. But they're hard to enforce.

Nearly 10 per cent actually decided to give up their jobs because they no longer felt able to be near the person they used to go out with.

Working is supposed to be about getting the job done. But until we're all replaced by robots, the human element will continue to play a factor in even the simplest job. And as this survey shows, it's one thing to love what you do, but quite another to do it with someone you love.

Survey Highlights

Had office romance: 46%
Met spouse at work: 20%
Got married to co-worker: 50%
Know of office affair: 48%
Strayed on business trip: 40%
Dated boss, superior or subordinate: 15%
Suffered unwanted advance: 43%

Company has employees-can't-date policy in place: 19%
Left job for violating that policy: 4%
Left job due to office romance break-up: 9%
Left job over "too much closeness": 6%

See a complete breakdown of the results here.

• Do the numbers quoted in this survey reflect your experience? Have you been involved with someone at work or do you know of an illicit affair going on during office hours? And did a workplace break-up make you reconsider your own career options? Send us an email at news@citynews.ca and let us know about your trysts of the trade. We won't use your name when we publish them in an upcoming article.