A new survey has found 46% of workers feel resentful of a colleague who is consistently late for work.
And 50% of respondents in senior management positions said that colleagues arriving late for work creates workplace animosity.
Half of employees said that they would like to see flexible working hours, and a further 27% would opt to work from home.
The employee punctuality study by Jobs.ie also found that the most common excuses for being late include traffic (59%), oversleeping (33%) and the weather (26%).
The survey also found that 20% admit to being dishonest when explaining why they were late for work.
One in four employers surveyed said they have fired an employee for consistent lateness.
Just over 40% of employers are said to have a 'zero tolerance' policy for lateness in the workplace, enforcing punishments if employees fail to show up on time.
Among those surveyed on their employer's attitude to punctuality, 41% described being punctual for work as absolutely essential.
Some 37% said there are no real consequences for being late, while 8% said there is a casual approach to punctuality and employees arrive when they wish, and 10% said that provided an individual gets through their work, nobody really notices what time they start work.
Overall, 96% of all employees said that they always arrive to work on time, with over half of employees (59%) aiming to be in work at least 15 minutes ahead of their scheduled start time.
But those who work nine to five prove to be the least punctual - with less than half (47%) arriving to work on time every day within the past 12 months.
Some 71% of respondents who work early morning shifts and 71% of those who work night shifts were always on time in the past year.
The vast majority of employees said that they have previously stayed beyond regular work hours to make up for being late to work.
Jobs.ie general manager, Chris Paye, said: "It may come as a surprise to many people that Irish workers are actually a very punctual bunch and take great pride in being on time or even early for work.
"Given this context, it's inevitable that tensions can arise in the workplace if one colleague is consistently late without a valid excuse.
"One potential solution is moving towards greater workplace flexibility, particularly in relation to start and finish times and remote working facilities.
"However, this is not a universal solution and may not be effective in all organisations."
- Digital Desk
