Half of all UK IT managers are so fed up with their jobs that they deliberately make life difficult for their users, new research has claimed.

According to an online poll of 2,800 employees conducted during June and July 2006, 75 per cent of IT workers go to work wishing they were in another job.

The survey, conducted on behalf of online training specialist SkillSoft, suggests that those working in non-managerial IT roles are the most dissatisfied of all the professions surveyed.

One third indicated that they are either 'not happy at all' or 'not very happy' at work.

More than one in 10 respondents have been so fed up that they have been deliberately unhelpful or obstructive to a manager, colleague or customer.

IT managers are the worst culprits, with 50 per cent admitting to being unhelpful and/or obstructive to a colleague recently. Only 16 per cent of other IT workers made the same confession.

The study warned employers that staff are also prepared to act on their dissatisfaction. Some 50 per cent of IT managers have either already registered or are about to register with a head-hunter or recruitment agency.

And 62 per cent of non-managerial IT personnel indicated that they have an up-to-date CV at the ready.

Both groups admitted to checking job websites and job vacancy listings while at work, and 80 per cent of IT managers and 71 per cent of other IT professionals typically check job sites more than once a week.

Some 70 per cent of IT managers surveyed admit to checking personal emails while at work, and a third said that they do so every time they check their work emails.

A further 30 per cent check their personal emails a few times during the day, and 10 per cent admit to logging into their private accounts once a day.

Mike Emmott, employee relations advisor at the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development, said: "People often do not feel appreciated by their managers.

"We have found that line managers do not do as well as they could in this area, but recognition is critical for employees."