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Honey, I’d Like to Introduce You to My Work Spouse…
A recent post on CareerandKids brought up a recent workplace phenomenon - work spouses. Now, I no longer work with “real people” on a day to day basis but I haven’t been away from it for too long. I can say with 100% certainty I did not have anything close to a work spouse. In fact, the last man I worked with I despised so much I would have gotten a work divorce from him soon if I hadn’t left. And my husband works at a company of 50 people and only has contact with men co-workers. I’m not kidding myself there - he’s a mechanical engineer for a company that makes machines that measure gears. Women aren’t beating down their door for a job. Anyway…I digress. Wikipedia defines it as:
“A work spouse is a co-worker (usually of the opposite sex) with whom one shares a special relationship, having bonds similar to those of a marriage; such as, special confidences, loyalties, shared jokes and experiences, and an unusual degree of honesty or openness. The work spouse is a potentially key relationship when one’s actual spouse or boy/girlfriend is not able to understand the nuances of the workplace. While it is not unusual for the relationship to contain elements of flirtation, this relationship can be threatened rather than enhanced if it becomes sexual. ”
I think I know what they’re getting at. I knew some people who had some much sexual tension you could cut it with a knife.
But at the same time, is there anything wrong if you get along with a coworker - even if they do happen to be of the opposite sex? Obviously, if you are in a profession you like, you’re going to be around people who have similar interests. Plus, I have a hard time believing the “bonds are similar to a marriage”. If that’s a case - you’re too married to your job and not enough to your spouse.
Any “Confessions of a Work Spouse” out there?
Technorati Tags: work spouse, affair at work, infidelity at work, marriage


I am very uncomfortable with this type of relationship. There’s a difference between getting along and having a relationship with a person who
1) Their label has the word “spouse” in it
2)You feel they understand you in ways your spouse can’t
3)You are sharing things with them that you should be sharing with your real spouse
I also don’t like how these sort of things encourage flirting.
There’s a difference between a relationship where you just get along and one where you are thinking about getting it on.
And just for the record, neither my husband nor I have a work spouse.