Invitations: 5 (VG). Offers of marriage: 0 (excellent). Instances of workplace discrimination: lots.
Singletons in the United Kingdom complain of bias in the workplace with pressure to attend after-hours dos and work weekends, a survey revealed this week.
Most single people are happy being single but many feel picked on at work, left out of couple- dominated social occasions and penalised financially, the telephone survey of 4 000 people by researchers at the media company Carat revealed.
Six out of 10 single people who work claim to have experienced some form of discrimination in the workplace because they are not romantically attached. The most common form of ”partnerism” complained about is being expected to work more at weekends (34%), to work longer hours (29%) or attend more out-of-hours social functions (27%) than their colleagues in relationships. One in five said they had been expected to travel more for work than their coupled colleagues.
Men complained more about discrimination because of their single status — two-thirds of single men said they had experienced at least one instance of discrimination compared with 48% of single women. Younger single workers claimed to have it worse. Nearly 70% of 16- to 24-year-olds said they had experienced ”coupleist” attitudes compared with 58% of 25- to 44-year-olds and 45% of 45- to 64-year-olds.
Singletons — whom the researchers defined as divorced, widowed, separated or otherwise not in a relationship and not planning to get married or move in with a partner in the next 12 months — made up 38% of those surveyed, but many live in flatshares or with family. Government figures at the end of last year revealed that around one in six people live alone. Only one in four in the Carat research said they would prefer to be in a steady relationship.
Half of single people say they have suffered negative experiences in their social lives as a result of being single. A quarter said they had been asked embarrassing questions in public about their love life and another quarter claimed to have been left out of social events dominated by couples. Women claim to have it worst; 55% say they have felt left out socially compared with 47% of single men.
Nearly 60% of all people questioned — not just those who are single — said they thought that people faced financial penalties for not being in a couple. — Â