Gen Z and HR have killed office romance — as fewer workers report crushes and flings

Looks like Cupid didn’t survive layoffs. 

Office romances are going cold across the US – where workplace crushes, coworker dates and steamy office flings are becoming less and less common every year, survey data shows.

Just 22% of employees surveyed by the human resources group SHRM in 2025 said they had a workplace crush – a staggering drop from the 49% who admitted the same in 2024. 

Only 16% of workers said they’d gone on a date with a colleague in the past year, down from 21% the previous year. 

Meanwhile, workplace hookups are becoming even more rare. Just 7% of employees admitting to having a “risky romantic encounter” on the job in 2025 – down from the 13% who confessed to an office romp the year before.

But it’s not just a short-term thrill that’s vanishing.

The workplace used to be a major source of finding a husband or wife. About 20% of adults over 50 said they met their spouse on the job, according to a 2020 Pew Research Center survey.

Only 13% of people aged 18 to 29 said the same.

Writer Juno Kelly suggested in a provocatively headlined New York Times column, “Go On, Date Your Co-Workers” that this was down to the rise of online dating among younger people and extensive HR sexual harassment training.

“It feels as if the risk outweighs the reward,” she wrote.

However, Kelly suggested that returning to more responsible office dating culture could solve Gen Z’s dating blahs.

More than a third of singles under 30 said they are not interested in dating, and half said they’re not looking.

“Where else in adulthood except the office would you bond with a potential paramour you share so much of everyday life with,” Kelly suggested.

Other old-school ways of finding love – through church, friends, college or neighbors – also saw sharp declines across generations, according to a Stanford study, which found that 40% of couples were meeting online by 2017.

Among the relatively small share of workers still mixing business with pleasure, more than half said they were hoping to find true love.

Another 40% admitted they were motivated by excitement, adventure or lust, while nearly 30% said they were seeking career advancements, security or power through office romance, the SHRM survey found. 

About one in five of those workers also confessed to engaging in public displays of affection on the job. 

Just as shockingly, the majority of office managers surveyed – 63% – said that romances between people on their team had a positive impact on workplace dynamics, while only 12% said they had a negative effect. 

“Workplace romances are an inherent part of the professional world, but they bring unique challenges,” SHRM President and CEO Johnny C. Taylor Jr. said about the findings. 

“This research underscores the need for clear policies, effective training, and an organizational culture fostering transparency and fairness. By addressing these dynamics thoughtfully, organizations can minimize risks while respecting employees’ personal connections.”