Eight out of 10 employees claim that being trusted to manage their own time and the internet as they wish is more important than pay.

Additionally, a fifth (21 per cent) of employees would turn down a job if it did not allow them access to social networking sites or personal email during work time, according to a survey carried out by software specialists Clearswift.

“This is quite shocking, especially when you consider the recent financial meltdown and the fact that unemployment is still so high,” commented Clearswift chief operating officer Andrew Wyatt.

More than six out of ten employees felt they should be allowed to conduct personal business during working hours, compared to just half of managers, whilst 79 per cent of workers ranked being trusted to manage their own time and use of the Internet above their salary or job role.

The survey explored employee attitudes to Internet use in the workplace and identified a new era of workers, termed 'generation standby', who never entirely switch off from either work or home.
The trend is most evident among 25 to 35-year olds, a group that has grown up using IT and the internet from a young age.

“These are people who, when they were born, were given a bottle, a mobile phone and a laptop,” said Wyatt. “They’re completely connected, through things such as email access and mobile phones, and it’s built in their psyche in the way they work; it’s how they expect things to be.

"Removing access to social media web sites in the workplace would be like cutting off their right arm.”

However, the research firm noted that staff were not just looking for an easy ride, and characteristically spent time carrying out home-related tasks at work owing to increased pressure to stay longer in the office.

In addition, two thirds (66 per cent) of employees say they make up the time they spend using the internet for personal reasons by working later or through lunch.

The research, which surveyed more than 1,600 managers and employees in the UK, US, Germany and Australia, showed that men were more likely to carry out social activities online at work than women.

Some 48 per cent of men admitted to logging in to social networking sites along with 36 per cent of women, and 69 per cent of men said they check personal email at work versus 54 per cent of women.

Men also spend more time shopping at work than women: 34 per cent of men said they did this compared to 20 per cent of women.