Archive · 22 May 2025
Ghostworking: The Growing Trend of Faking Productivity
Imagine you're at work, but the tasks feel boring or pointless.
Some people are pretending to work to get through the day.
This is called ghostworking.
They might type random stuff, have fake meetings, or look busy in other ways.
A survey showed that many employees do this.
They might feel this way because they're not happy with their jobs.
They might not feel appreciated, or the work might not feel important.
Many are also looking for new jobs while at work.
Experts suggest that employers should give employees more freedom and trust to make them feel more productive and happy.
Ghostworking involves employees appearing busy without doing actual work.
A survey revealed 58% of employees admit to faking productivity.
Reasons for ghostworking include lack of appreciation and job satisfaction.
Many workers use company time for job hunting.
Employers are recommended to balance accountability with autonomy.
- Who
- Employees, particularly Gen Z, are increasingly resorting to ghostworking.
- What
- Employees are engaging in 'ghostworking' - appearing busy while doing little actual work.
- When
- The trend is increasing, according to a recent survey.
- Where
- The survey included responses from U.S. workers. Specific locations are not mentioned.
- Why
- Contributing factors include office pressures, micromanagement, lack of meaningful tasks, and unclear job expectations.
Employees
Employers
Employee Engagement vs. Productivity
Employees
Employees feel disengaged due to lack of meaningful tasks, unclear job expectations, and other factors.
Employers
Employers are trying to ensure productivity by setting up an environment that focuses on accountability.
- Employees faking productivity
- 58%
- Workers editing resumes at work
- 24%
- Workers applying for new jobs at work
- 23%
- Workers walking around with notebooks
- 23%
- Workers typing gibberish
- 22%
- U.S. workers surveyed
- 1,100