NEW YORK (TheStreet) - The next time the boss catches you checking your fantasy football team at work, don't sheepishly hit Shift+Ctrl+Tab: Tell him it's part of your workflow.

According to a survey by outplacement consulting firm Challenger, Gray and Christmas, the majority of human resources departments don't consider fantasy football a distraction or a detriment to employee productivity. In fact, 46.2% of respondents said they didn't care if employees jumped on

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ESPN or countless other fantasy football sites to activate Michael Vick or bench Clinton Portis during company time as long as the quality of that employee's work didn't decline.

"Other surveys show that people are indeed managing their fantasy teamsfrom work," said John A. Challenger, chief executive officer of Challenger, Gray & Christmas, in a statement. "However, what we are hearing from the human resources community is that this is not at all affecting the level of output workers are expected to deliver,"

This isn't the first time the firm has tackled this issue, though it is the first time its statistics have played defense for fantasy team owners. In 2008, the firm blindsided fantasy football players by saying the game would cost employers $9.2 billion in lost productivity. Based on Fantasy Sports Trade Association (FSTA) estimates of average team owners' salaries ($80,000) and hours spent running the team per week (1.19), the firm estimated fantasy football cost companies $45.22 per week per player. As with the latest findings, however, Challenger says it's an example of how work and personal lives are mixing and

not

an excuse to sack the 20.3 million Americans that the FSTA says play the game each season.

"It is difficult for companies to take a hard-line stance against fantasy football," Challenger's statement said. "The internet technology that helped fuel the rapid growth of fantasy football participation and makes it possible to manage teams from one's desk also makes it possible for employees to attend to work duties during their personal time."

The FSTA says fantasy football players spend roughly four hours a week shaking up rosters, checking the waiver wire and injury reports and making trades. Of that time, roughly 1.2 hours of fantasy team management occurs at the office. Despite this, only 24% of HR departments surveyed by Challenger say their company blocks access to fantasy sports sites, while 7.7% say they embrace fantasy football as a morale booster.

Perhaps it's because more than 65% of those surveyed play fantasy football and more than 69% of workplaces say they are aware of participation among the ranks and don't discourage it. While this isn't a new development - 40% of respondents to an Ipsos poll four years ago said fantasy sports was a positive, camaraderie-building influence on the workplace, with 25% saying it helped develop business contacts - fantasy football-friendly workplaces have helped turn the game into an $800 million industry. So go ahead: Take time between TPS reports to trash talk the team owner who drafted former Buffalo Bills starting quarterback Trent Edwards in the second round. It's not loafing: It's team building.

"Companies that not only allow workers to indulge in fantasy football, butactually encourage it by organizing a company leagues are likely to see significantbenefits in morale as well as productivity," Challenger said. "In the long run, thismay lead to increased employee retention."

--Written by Jason Notte in Boston.

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Jason Notte is a reporter for TheStreet.com. His writing has appeared in The New York Times, The Huffington Post, Esquire.com, Time Out New York, the Boston Herald, The Boston Phoenix, Metro newspaper and the Colorado Springs Independent.