What’s love got to do with work?
Apparently, a lot. In this year’s Workplace Romance Report, we polled 1,000 U.S. employees to get a better sense of how love blooms (or crashes and burns) in the workplace.
This year, love at work is anything but straightforward — our report explores workplace romance dynamics in 2025 and how they’re impacting careers.
- 39% of workers have dated a coworker, and 36% have had a physical relationship with one
- 45% of Gen Z and 42% of Millennials have slept with a colleague
- 11% of Gen Z workers have dated their manager
- 11% of Gen Z employees say they’ve been in a relationship with their own subordinate or direct report
- 43% of women have experienced unwanted advances from coworkers, compared to 28% of men
- 72% of workplace romances are kept hidden from HR or management, with Gen X being the most secretive at 86%
- 57% of respondents say workplace romances make work more exciting, but 28% admit they cause distractions
- 38% of workers worry about the awkward fallout if a workplace romance ends
- 10% of Gen Z and 9% of Millennials say their workplace romance helped them land a promotion
- 63% of Gen Z workers say a workplace romance influenced their long-term career decisions, compared to 34% of overall workers
Who’s hooking up (and how often)
Turns out, meetings aren’t the only thing heating up at work — nearly half of employees are turning coworkers into something more.
According to our Workplace Romance Report, 44% of U.S. workers have successfully started a workplace romance or attempted to start a romantic relationship at work (but were either rejected or didn’t take things further).
Among those who succeeded:
- 38% have been involved in a workplace romance, including:
- 18% with someone from a different team or department
- 17% with someone on the same team
- 6% with a supervisor or manager
- 5% with a subordinate
Interestingly, 9% of workers have been involved in more than one workplace romance, and 10% of U.S. employees say they’ve matched with a coworker on a dating app.
Meanwhile, 62% of workers say they’ve never pursued a romantic connection at work:
- 56% weren’t interested or didn’t try
- 6% admit they gave it a shot but were rejected or didn’t move further with it
Nearly 4 in 10 U.S. workers have dated or slept with a coworker
Workplace relationships are more common than you might think, with nearly 4 in 10 U.S. employees saying they’ve dated or gotten busy with a coworker. The data breaks it down further:
- 39% of workers say they’ve gone on a date with a coworker. Here are the full findings:
- 18% say they did it just once
- 17% say they’ve gone on a few dates
- 4% say they date coworkers regularly or all the time
- 36% of employees say they’ve slept with a coworker, including:
- 20% who reported it happening once
- 12% who have done it a few times
- 4% who say these relationships occur regularly or all the time
One-third of employees have received unwanted passes from a coworker
While many enjoy the thrill of workplace relationships, not all experiences are positive.
Our Workplace Romance Report found that 35% of employees have experienced unwanted advances from a coworker that made them feel uncomfortable.
And not all office crushes are mutual:
- 43% of workers say a coworker showed romantic interest in them, but they didn’t feel the same way
- 28% of workers admit they’ve been romantically interested in a coworker who didn’t return their feelings
However, not every office fling is short-lived or unwanted. In fact, 30% of workers say their coworker connection turned into a long-term relationship.
Also, when things don’t work out, many keep it professional — 27% of workers have ended a relationship but continued working together.
Gen Z is dating their managers
It seems Gen Z isn’t afraid to blur professional lines, and have been pursuing relationships with everyone from colleagues to their bosses.
- 44% of Gen Z and 45% of Millennials say they’ve dated a coworker, compared to 37% of Gen X and just 29% of Baby Boomers who say the same
- 15% of Gen Z say they’ve been in multiple workplace romances, compared to 9% of Millennials, 10% of Gen X, and 4% of Baby Boomers
Physical relationships follow a similar pattern:
- 45% of Gen Z and 42% of Millennials have slept with a coworker, while 35% of Gen X and 21% of Baby Boomers report the same.
Our report also found that younger workers are more likely to date someone above or below them at work:
- 11% of Gen Z workers have been in a relationship with their manager
- This finding drops to 7% of Millennials, 5% of Gen X, and just 3% of Baby Boomers
Similarly, 1 in 10 Gen Z workers (11%) have dated their own subordinates or direct reports, compared to 6% of Millennials and just 3% of Gen X and Baby Boomers.
Younger workers are also dominating when it comes to finding colleagues on dating apps.
24% of Gen Z workers have matched with a coworker on a dating app, which is higher than 16% of Millennials, 6% of Gen X, and 1% of Baby Boomers.
Men are pursuing, while women are dodging advances
We found that while men are often making the first move, women are dealing with attention they didn’t ask for.
- 44% of men have gone on a date with a coworker, compared to 35% of women
- Men are also 37% more likely to sleep with a coworker: 42% of men have slept with a coworker, compared to 31% of women
- Men are more likely to act on romantic interest, with 37% of men feeling romantic interest that wasn’t reciprocated, versus 19% of women
- Women, however, face more unwanted attention — 43% of women report receiving unwanted advances compared to 28% of men
- Men are three times more likely to match with a coworker on a dating app: 15% of men have matched with a coworker, compared to only 5% of women
- 1 in 3 men (35%) have had a long-term relationship with a coworker, compared to 1 in 4 women (25%)
72% of workplace romances stay off HR’s radar
Workplace relationships are often kept under wraps, and the numbers prove it: almost three-fourths of workplace romances aren’t shared with HR or management.
Whether it’s out of privacy concerns, fear of judgment or getting fired, or simply because it’s not required, the majority of employees choose to keep their relationships a secret.
- Three in four (72%) people in workplace romances don’t disclose the relationship to HR or their manager. Of those:
- 27% say their company didn’t ask workers to disclose any workplace romances
- 21% didn’t disclose their relationship, and no one knew about it
- 22% didn’t disclose it, but some colleagues knew
- 10% didn’t disclose it, but their manager found out.
- 5% didn’t disclose it, but HR found out.
Even for those who do share news about their workplace romance, it’s not always immediate.
- Only 11% of workers told HR about their relationship right away, and 14% shared the news with their manager immediately
- Some waited a bit longer, with 8% eventually talking to HR about their relationship and 9% doing the same with their manager later on
Younger generations are more likely to share their relationship status
When it comes to workplace relationships, how open people are depends a lot on their generation.
Based on our findings, Gen X is the most secretive, with 86% choosing to keep quiet about their office romances. In comparison, 82% of Baby Boomers, 64% of Millennials, and 52% of Gen Z kept their relationships under wraps.
One reason for this shift may be changing company policies.
Many older workers weren’t required to disclose workplace relationships: 51% of Baby Boomers say their company didn’t require them to disclose the relationship, compared to 26% of Gen X, 25% of Millennials, and 10% of Gen Z.
Gen Z stands out as the most open generation when it comes to workplace relationships. They’re much more comfortable sharing relationship details with their managers compared to older generations
Almost half (47%) of Gen Z workers say they disclosed their workplace romance to their manager — 30% immediately and 17% after some time. Here’s how other generations compare:
- Millennials: 19% immediately, 13% after some time
- Gen X: 9% immediately, 4% after some time
- Baby Boomers: 5% immediately, 5% after some time
Gen Z is also more willing to inform HR, with 46% reporting their relationship — 23% immediately and 23% later on. Here’s how the other generations measure up:
- Millennials: 16% immediately, 10% after some time
- Gen X: 4% immediately, 3% after some time
- Baby Boomers: 9% immediately, 2% after some time
The good, the bad, and the awkward of office relationships
While workplace relationships often add excitement, they’re not without challenges. It appears that distractions, gossip, and stress come as part of the package.
57% of workers say romance makes work more exciting
When asked what benefits and challenges they faced at work because of their workplace romance, people responded as follows:
- Made going to work more exciting (57%)
- Caused distractions from work tasks (28%)
- Strengthened work-life balance (25%)
- Improved mental health (24%)
- Made them the subject of office gossip (23%)
- Caused stressful interactions with the partner at work (15%)
- Worsened their work-life balance (11%)
- Worsened their mental health (9%)
- Helped them get a raise or promotion (6%)
It looks like these relationships shape their career paths in unexpected ways. Workplace romances appear to be getting younger generations promotions — but at a cost.
- 10% of Gen Z and 9% of Millennials say their workplace romance helped them secure a raise or promotion
- Meanwhile, only 4% of Gen X and 5% of Baby Boomers reported the same
- 33% of Gen Z workers say their office relationship negatively affected their work-life balance
- This finding is higher than 15% of Millennials, 5% of Gen X, and just 2% of Baby Boomers
- Despite the challenges, 37% of Gen Z say their workplace romance improved their mental health
- Fewer Millennials (25%), Gen X (20%), and Baby Boomers (21%) reported the same benefit
- 33% of Gen Z and 28% of Gen X say their workplace romance made them the subject of office gossip
- This issue was less common for Millennials (18%) and Baby Boomers (16%)
Most workers worry about the fallout after a breakup
Breakups at work can be awkward at best and career-ending at worst. Here are 1,000 workers’ biggest concerns about workplace dating:
- 38% say it’s the tension or awkwardness after a breakup
- 24% say they’re worried about a conflict of interest arising if one person holds a position of power
- 13% say they’re concerned about their relationship causing gossip among colleagues
- 11% say it’s work-life balance issues
- 8% say they’re worried about perceived favoritism
- 7% don’t see any risks with workplace romances
We discovered that there’s general concern about the potential fallout of workplace relationships, particularly when power dynamics, like a senior position, are involved.
- 28% of women say their biggest concern about workplace romances is the conflict of interest if one person holds a position of power, compared to 21% of men
- 9% of women say their biggest concern is work-life balance issues, compared to 13% of men
1 in 3 workers say their workplace romance influenced their career choices
Can an office fling be completely life-changing? For several employees, it seems so:
When asked if having a romantic relationship at work changed their career journey, here’s what we found out:
- One in three workers (34%) who’ve had a workplace romance say it influenced their long-term career decisions
- 11% say it made them stay at their job
- 9% say it made them leave their job
- 7% say it encouraged them to switch departments or teams within their company
- 7% say it encouraged them to seek a promotion
- 6% say it led them to choose to stay in the same role rather than advance
- 5% say it limited their opportunities for promotion
- 9% say it led them to pursue opportunities outside of their current industry
- 8% say it influenced their overall career path within the industry
2 in 10 Gen Z workers say their romance made them quit their job
For younger workers, workplace relationships often lead to dramatic career changes. For Gen Z, their careers are heavily shaped by their office dating adventures:
- Two in three Gen Z employees (63%) who’ve been in a workplace romance say it influenced their long-term career, compared to 39% of Millennials, 28% of Gen X, and 12% of Baby Boomers
- 23% of Gen Z say their workplace romance made them leave their job, while 20% say it made them stay
- 27% of Gen Z say their romance encouraged them to seek a promotion, while 7% say it held them back from getting one
Workplace romances also seem to have a bigger impact on men’s careers than women’s:
- 37% of men who’ve been in a workplace romance say that it influenced their long-term career, compared to 29% of women
- 12% of men say it encouraged them to change industries, compared to 6% of women
- 7% of men say it limited their opportunities for promotions, compared to 2% of women
Conclusion
This study gives us a glimpse into how workplace romances impact the work environment and why it’s important to handle them thoughtfully. These relationships are bound to happen, but creating a positive workplace means approaching them with understanding and care.
Employers can help by setting clear policies and encouraging open communication, so everyone feels respected and on the same page. At the same time, employees can make a difference too by approaching these situations with professionalism and mutual respect. When both sides work together, it’s easier to maintain a healthy, balanced workplace for everyone.
Methodology
This report was based on a survey conducted in partnership with Pollfish. The study explored the attitudes and experiences of full-time U.S. workers regarding workplace romances. It examined the impact of these relationships on their careers and behaviors and identified gender and generational trends in attitudes and behaviors.
The survey launched on November 15, 2024, and targeted a sample of 1,000 participants. Analysis was conducted from January 7 to 13, 2025. Respondents were required to be full-time employees in the U.S. to qualify for the survey. The survey ensured a balanced representation across various demographics, including gender and age groups, to accurately reflect the diversity of the U.S. working population. The data was analyzed using both the results provided by Pollfish and the outputted raw data in Google Sheets via programs created with Python Pandas.
To minimize bias, Pollfish uses Random Device Engagement (RDE) to ensure a fair and organic selection process. For further details on Pollfish’s methodology, please visit their website or contact eduardo@resumegenius.com.
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About the Author
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Eva Chan is a Career Expert and Senior Digital PR Writer at Resume Genius. Eva oversees research and data-led campaigns that reveal key trends in today’s workforce and represents the company in media interviews and press features. Her work focuses on guiding job seekers through today’s job market and helping them present their applications and skills with confidence.
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