If searching for a sign of a good economy, look no further thanyour workplace. The holiday season has kicked off and people arespending more time than last year shopping at work.

According to a new survey of 3,321 U.S. employees fromCareerBuilder, half of workers plan to spend time shopping at workduring the holiday season. That's 3% higher than last year'spoll.

But 58% of the admitted shoppers say they'll spend less than anhour secretly shopping. That means that roughly a quarter of thetotal U.S. workforce will spend more than an hour shopping at theoffice in the coming weeks.

“In a world where the lines between the professional andpersonal are becoming more and more blurred every day, it's notsurprising that more employees are bringing personal activities tothe workplace,” Rosemary Haefner, chief human resources officer atCareerBuilder, said.

A recent survey by Robert Half, an employment consulting firm,found that most employers aren't bothered by moderate onlineshopping in the office — at least not enough to prohibit it. But instark contrast, the CareerBuilder poll of 2,326 HR professionalsfound that 56% of employers intend to block employees fromaccessing certain websites at work, and 28% have fired an employeefor inappropriate internet use.

Haefner suggests that employers let some subtle shopping slide,as long as the employee is still getting work done.

“Employees should follow the rules, but employers should becareful not to micromanage,” she said. “The issue should be moreabout performance than about what employees are doing with theirtime.”

Those employed in sales are the most likely to shop at work.Sixty-two percent of professional sellers will spend part of theirwork day buying this holiday season. Seems to make sense. However,those working in retail — at the absolute epicenter of holidayshopping — are the least likely to shop for themselves at work.