As Twilight fans recoil over the news that Kristen Stewart cheated on her heartthrob boyfriend, Robert Pattinson, with a colleague - you might want to think twice before raising a judgmental eyebrow.
Chances are your colleague from across the office has slept with a fellow co-worker at least once, as infidelity in the workplace is on the rise, a dating website has found.
Kristen Stewart and Rupert Sanders - both have admitted to having an affair
Kristen Stewart is among the rising trend of female adulterers, as an increasing number of taken women cheat within the first three years of their relationship, according to new statistics.
A study by infidelity dating website AshleyMadison.com discovered that 22% of the 2,500 British women polled have slept with a work colleague. The majority of affairs occurred with senior members of the company.
Astonishingly, 90% admitted to taking their infidelity even further by ‘double dipping’ - meaning they cheated on their direct boss with someone even more senior in the company.
“Professional environments are where unprofessional acts occur most often – and not just in Hollywood,” CEO of AshleyMadison, Noel Biderman, told HuffPost Lifestyle.
How to spot the signs of lying...
So why can’t we keep it professional over the photocopier?
“With UK workers clocking up the longest hours in Europe, Brits often spend more time with co-workers than spouses, and inevitably attractions develop,” adds Biderman.
And it’s unfaithful females who are leading the workplace infidelity trend, Biderman tells HuffPost Lifestyle.
According to previous research by the dating website, two years ago, 2% of women using AshleyMadison.com were having affairs within the first three years of their relationship.
This number has since grown to 14% in 2012; a massive 600% increase, says Biderman.
However, we all know that an affair takes two to tango.
Kristen isn’t the married party in this affair unlike the object of her affections, Rupert Saunders.
Sadly, the 42-year-old married dad-of-two is among the growing number of men who cheat on their wives with a co-worker.
A separate study of 4,000 married people conducted by married dating website, Illicit Encounters, discovered a staggering 1.3m of British married men have cheated on their wife with a work colleague.
The research found that 25% of men admit to being unfaithful to their spouse with a co-worker at least once, compared to 18% of married women.
Illicit Encounters spokesperson told HuffPost Lifestyle: “The British population is now more obsessed with work than we’ve ever been.
“It's not surprising to see that during the stress of the economy Britain has decided to mix business with pleasure. However affairs in the workplace are hardly ever a good idea and can lead to a poor working environment, even for those not involved in the affair.”
That’s cheating! (What you didn’t know about affairs)