1 in 5 workers in on March Madness

CHICAGO, March 13 (UPI) -- March Madness started Tuesday and one in five U.S. workers admits the likelihood of posting picks in an office pool, a survey indicates.

Twenty percent of workers in a CareerBuilder survey said they've participated in March Madness college basketball pools and while they may not be watching the clock, 17 percent said they've been known to check the scores while on the clock. Ten percent of those surveyed said they've watched games while they're supposed to be working.

The survey of 7,780 workers was conducted Nov. 9-Dec. 5 by Harris Interactive on behalf of CareerBuilder.

Twenty-seven percent of men said they've joined office pools, compared to 13 percent of women. Office pools appear to be most popular in the Midwest, with 23 percent of workers taking part in March Madness pools, compared to 20 percent of workers in the West, 19 percent in the South and 18 percent in the Northeast.

Among larger markets, Washington, Minneapolis and Chicago ranked the highest in participation.

CareerBuilder said other memorable office pools uncovered in the survey include, "Who would be the first person to drink too much at a company party," "How long the [chief executive officer's] fourth marriage would last" and "Who would grow the best beard in one month's time."

The margin of error was plus or minus 1.11 percentage points.