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Over one in three employees admit to pinching bin bags, loo rolls and tea bags from work

  • More than one in three (35%) employees have pocketed items from their workplace

  • Stationery items most popular – but one in ten (8%) have taken home bin bags and loo rolls

  • One in ten (10%) of those who “borrow” things do so to keep going until payday

  • 28% do it because they don’t have time to shop – while one in ten (11%) say it’s because they are underpaid

  • Tech-ing liberties: a fifth of workers (19%) charge their gadgets at work and over one in ten (12%) use their work phone to make personal calls

  • Net savings: over one in ten (11%) use the office Wi-Fi for downloads.

Offices throughout the country are being substituted for free shops as more than one in three workers (35%) admit to pinching essential household items from their workplace, blaming a lack of both time and money, according to new research from Uswitch.com, the price comparison and switching service.

While stationery items – notebooks, envelopes, sticky tape and glue – are the most popular products to pinch, consumers are also nabbing bin bags, loo roll, tea bags and even soap from their employers.

Over a quarter (28%) of these workers admit to pocketing items as they don’t have time to pick them up on their way home and a quarter (26%) justify their actions by saying the items they take will go to waste if they don’t take them.However, one in ten (11%) pinch from work as they don’t feel they are paid enough, and a further 10% “borrow” items just to keep going until payday. Over one in five (21%) don’t think anyone will notice things are missing, while a lucky seven per cent believe that helping themselves to items from work is their right as an employee.

One in five (19%) employees confess to plugging into company power sockets to charge their smartphone and other gadgets to save on their home energy bill. Meanwhile, over a tenth (12%) use their work phone to make personal calls that would normally cost money, such as to long-distance and premium rate numbers, and a further one in ten (11%) use the office internet and Wi-fi for downloads when they have reached their limit at home.

David Mann, Head of Money at Uswitch.com, says: “Penny pinching has become a national sport – but it’s interesting to see that people are pocketing items that often cost less than £1 to buy in the shops. For some, it’s payback for a disappointing pay rise while for others it’s simply a perk of the job. But whatever the reason, the cost adds up, especially for small businesses.

“If you are feeling strapped for cash, there are other ways to save that don’t involve raiding the stationary cupboard – whether it’s swapping your Starbucks for office coffee once a week or switching your current account to a new bank for an instant cash reward. The savings will soon add up – and may put you in a position to buy your own bin bags next time and avoid getting into trouble with your boss.”

FOR MORE INFORMATION

Ailene Barr

Phone: 020 3872 5610

Email: ailene.barr@uswitch.com

Twitter: @uswitchPR

Notes to editors

All research referred to below was conducted by Opinium amongst 2,000 working adults in January 2014. 1.In response to: “Have you ever ‘borrowed’ (i.e. taken home) any of the below items from work?” 25% answered ‘Stationery - i.e. pens, notebooks, highlighters, glue, etc.’, 13% answered ‘Packaging - i.e. boxes, envelopes, sticky tape, wrapping paper’, 6% answered ‘Bin bags’, 5% answered ‘Loo roll’, 5% answered ‘Food/soft drinks’, 4% answered ‘Stamps’, 4% answered ‘Teabags’, 3% answered ‘IT equipment’, 3% answered ‘Alcohol - i.e. left over wine, champagne, prosecco’, 2% answered ‘Soap/creams’, 1% answered ‘Women’s hygiene products’, 2% answered ‘Other’, 63% said ‘None of these’ and 2% answered ‘Don’t know / can’t remember’. Net borrowed = 35%. 2.In response to: “You said that you occasionally ‘borrowed’ things from work (among the 702 respondents who had borrowed something). For which, if any, of the following reasons have you done so?” 28% answered ‘Sometimes I need something but don’t have time to go to the store on my way home’, 26% answered ‘I know it will go to waste / be unused if I don’t take it’, 21% answered ‘I don’t think anyone will notice it missing’, 16% answered ‘I took something home without realising it was in my pocket / bag / on my person’, 11% answered ‘I feel that I am not paid enough, so this helps me feel better about things’, 10% answered ‘It helps me get through the last few days of the month before payday’, 7% answered ‘I think it’s my right as an employee’, 17% answered ‘Other reason’, and 4% answered ‘Don’t know / can’t remember’. 3.In response to: “Have you taken advantage of your workplace in any of the following ways to save money? 19% answered ‘Charging my phone/electronics at work rather than doing it at home’, 12% answered ‘Using my work phone to make personal calls that would normally cost money - e.g. long-distance calls, calls to 0800 numbers, etc.’, 10% answered ‘Taking advantage of free food at work – e.g. eating breakfast food for lunch or dinner’, 7% answered ‘Using the internet at the office rather than paying for internet at home’, 5% answered ‘Using the Wi-Fi at work for downloads when I reach my Wi-Fi download limit at home’, 3% answered ‘Showering at work’, 2% answered ‘Claiming something on expenses for more than the actual cost’, 2% answered ‘Claiming expenses for things that might not normally be expensed’, 1% answered ‘Use the straighteners / blow dryer at work rather than using them at home’, 1% answered ‘Other’ and 64% answered ‘None of these’.

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About Uswitch

Uswitch is the UK’s top comparison website for home services switching. Launched in September 2000, we help consumers save money on their gas, electricity, broadband, mobile, TV, and financial services products and get more of what matters to them. Last year we saved consumers over £373 million on their energy bills alone.

Uswitch is part of RVU, a new business that also owns Money.co.uk and Bankrate.

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