Who shirks at work? A time use exploration

Shirking, or loafing, refers to the time workers spend at the workplace engaged in non-work activities, such as leisure, internet shopping, or social media. This paper examines the shirking behaviors of workers in the US using time use diaries from the American Time Use Survey for the period 2003-2019. We focus on the minutes spent shirking, the ratio of shirking time to market work time, and the probability of being a worker who shirks. Our results show that being female, holding a university degree, having specific household characteristics, working in the private sector, and having an unsupervised occupation are associated with less time spent shirking, lower shirking shares, and a reduced likelihood of being a shirker. These findings highlight key sociodemographic factors linked to workplace shirking and offer insights for employers and policymakers aiming to improve productivity and engagement.