Employees viewing porn at work - a sign of addiction?

The HR director for a 400-employee firm recently had some questions for me. Her IT department has been monitoring internet access for years, and she's become used to receiving reports of porn surfing employees. When staff members are confronted, however, she has noticed a significant increase in admissions of 'porn addiction'.

She doesn't hear the classic excuses so often; 'my pc must have caught a virus', 'I didn't know what I was clicking on - it just popped onto the screen' or 'the cleaners must have found my pc left on'. Increasingly, employees are admitting that their desire to engage in pornography is out of control. What's the best way to manage this situation? Is 'porn addiction' a cheap excuse for seeking thrills at work, or are they succumbing to a genuine addiction?

It's probable that porn addiction has always been the root cause of illicit activities on the office computer. Surfing porn at work may even have added to the rebellious, reckless thrill of the compulsive habit. The raised profile of sex and porn addicts in the media may have allowed for a greater honesty and admission when it leads to trouble with the boss. I like to think that might be the case.

The trouble is, the old excuses made everything much easier for HR departments. The employee would awkwardly deny it was them, despite reports and recorded evidence to the contrary. After repeated challenge and denial situations, they'd be fired in accordance with company policy. Simple as that. Now we're talking about a compulsive problem, a personal disorder that has only been made worse by office internet access.

Unless the surfing is illegal or extreme, first offences of inappropriate internet use at work generally lead to a warning. In many cases, this is sufficient. For the employee with a mild porn habit, it can be a wake-up call. The risks to income, career and reputation suddenly seem too real. Along with the warning, however, I would always advise providing the opportunity to talk about any potential problem. Make it clear that this is not an invitation for excuses - the job remains at risk - but if the staff member feels that they may have a problem habit with porn, support is available.

In this situation, an offer of arranged, confidential counselling would be appropriate; it's an approach increasingly adopted by larger employers. The intention is to assist the staff member in accepting accountability for their behaviour, and regaining control. In most cases, counselling can help address an addiction to porn. Secondly, a mutual agreement to filter or block their internet access can also be constructive, though office employment duties do increasingly require some level of internet access.

Of course, the provision of counselling will incur some cost. However, when compared to the cost of managing repeated offences, official disciplinary proceedings, sacking and recruitment expenses, this approach can work out very favourably for everyone concerned.