Personnel Today
  • Home
    • All PT content
    • Advertise
  • Email sign-up
  • Topics
    • HR Practice
    • Employee relations
    • Equality, diversity and inclusion
    • Learning & training
    • Pay & benefits
    • Wellbeing
    • Recruitment & retention
    • HR strategy
    • HR Tech
    • The HR profession
    • Global
    • All HR topics
  • Legal
    • Case law
    • Commentary
    • Flexible working
    • Legal timetable
    • Maternity & paternity
    • Shared parental leave
    • Redundancy
    • TUPE
    • Disciplinary and grievances
    • Employer’s guides
  • AWARDS
    • Personnel Today Awards
    • The RAD Awards
  • Jobs
    • Find a job
    • Jobs by email
    • Careers advice
    • Post a job
  • XpertHR
    • Learn more
    • Products
    • Pricing
    • Free trial
    • Subscribe
    • XpertHR USA
  • Webinars
  • OHW+

Personnel Today

Register
Log in
Personnel Today
  • Home
    • All PT content
    • Advertise
  • Email sign-up
  • Topics
    • HR Practice
    • Employee relations
    • Equality, diversity and inclusion
    • Learning & training
    • Pay & benefits
    • Wellbeing
    • Recruitment & retention
    • HR strategy
    • HR Tech
    • The HR profession
    • Global
    • All HR topics
  • Legal
    • Case law
    • Commentary
    • Flexible working
    • Legal timetable
    • Maternity & paternity
    • Shared parental leave
    • Redundancy
    • TUPE
    • Disciplinary and grievances
    • Employer’s guides
  • AWARDS
    • Personnel Today Awards
    • The RAD Awards
  • Jobs
    • Find a job
    • Jobs by email
    • Careers advice
    • Post a job
  • XpertHR
    • Learn more
    • Products
    • Pricing
    • Free trial
    • Subscribe
    • XpertHR USA
  • Webinars
  • OHW+

Personnel Today

Office romances pose a problem for firms

by Personnel Today 17 Oct 2000
by Personnel Today 17 Oct 2000

Few employers have a written policy on romantic relationships between staff, although many believe they harm teamwork.

A survey from employment analysts IRS has found most employers choose to tackle the problem by having a quiet word with the couple. This task is usually split between the line manager and the HR department. But in one in five companies nobody has taken the lead in resolving the issue.

The survey questioned 94 private and public sector organisations about consensual sexual and romantic relationships in the workplace, and what policies were used to deal with them.

Most respondents believed there was little impact on workplace performance, but 36 per cent believed teamwork would be adversely affected, and 27 per cent considered that the working environment and atmosphere were likely to be damaged.

Respondents felt this was a “fraught” issue, and many said they wanted it handled better. More than a third of those questioned said they are planning to make changes during the next five years.

Angela Baron, employee resourcing advisor to the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development, said she is not surprised at the lack of formal policies dealing with romantic relationships at work.

“It is an area which is impossible to legislate. The advice we give is that if someone is in a relationship and not performing their job adequately, the issue should be dealt with under disciplinary relationships, which is about avoiding bringing personal activities into the office,” she said.

Baron believes companies are cautious about how they act in this area since they do not want to drive relationships underground, particularly if company security could be threatened as a result.

“For employers such as banks there are solid business and security reasons for having policies. The important thing is not to legislate against it, but to manage the consequences,” she said.

How many workplace relationships take place is still unclear. Anecdotal evidence indicates that 50 per cent of people meet their partners at work, although recent statistical evidence seems to refute this.

But for one respondent the issue is a live one. “This organisation has an astonishingly high rate of relationships. It does not seem to affect the workings of the business, except where there is a line-management issue,” was the comment.

• IRS Employment Trends, 020-7354 5858

web link www.irseclipse.co.uk


Some views on work relationships

“The manufacturing sector is very traditional in that many families work in the same environment. Consensual relationships are accepted as commonplace and not necessarily discouraged.”


“This is such a difficult area – personal life versus private life versus work life. There should be guidelines HR can give to managers, including on working arrangements if the two parties work together.”


“In an ideal world it would not happen, but it does, and is a problem which all managers will have to address at some point”


“We do not find relationships unacceptable as long as professionalism is maintained and the business is not compromised.”


“We have found these types of relationship usually end with one of the parties leaving the workplace when it finishes.”


By Kathy Watson

Personnel Today
Personnel Today

Personnel Today articles are written by an expert team of award-winning journalists who have been covering HR and L&D for many years. Some of our content is attributed to "Personnel Today" for a number of reasons, including: when numerous authors are associated with writing or editing a piece; or when the author is unknown (particularly for older articles).

previous post
How targets for HR will affect funding of trusts
next post
Technology for the busy HR professional

You may also like

Barrister wins gender critical belief discrimination claim

27 Jul 2022

‘Patchy’ mental health services failing ethnic minority communities

11 Jul 2022

Global study highlights hypertension treatment failings

8 Jul 2022

NICE sets out new guideline on managing depression

8 Jul 2022

Half of employees struggle to switch off on...

8 Jul 2022

Five steps for organisations across the globe to...

8 Jun 2022

The Search for Talent: Six Major Employer Pitfalls

24 May 2022

Grants scheme set up to support women’s health...

16 May 2022

How music can help to ease anxiety at...

9 May 2022

OH will be key to navigating ‘second pandemic’...

14 Apr 2022
  • 6 reasons why work-based learning is better than traditional training PROMOTED | A recent Fortune/Deloitte survey found that 71% of CEOs are anticipating that this year’s biggest business disrupter...Read more
  • Strengthening Scotland’s public services through virtual recruiting PROMOTED | This website is Scotland's go-to place for job seekers looking to apply for roles in public services...Read more
  • What’s next for L&D? Enter Alchemist… PROMOTED | It’s time to turn off the tedious and get ready for interactive and immersive learning experiences...Read more
  • Simple mistakes are blighting the onboarding experience PROMOTED | The onboarding of new hires is a company’s best chance...Read more
  • Preventing Burnout: How can HR help key workers get the right help? PROMOTED | Workplace wellbeing may seem a distant memory...Read more

Personnel Today Jobs
 

Search Jobs

PERSONNEL TODAY

About us
Contact us
Browse all HR topics
Email newsletters
Content feeds
Cookies policy
Privacy policy
Terms and conditions

JOBS

Personnel Today Jobs
Post a job
Why advertise with us?

EVENTS & PRODUCTS

The Personnel Today Awards
The RAD Awards
Employee Benefits
Forum for Expatriate Management
OHW+
Whatmedia

ADVERTISING & PR

Advertising opportunities
Features list 2022

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
  • Linkedin


© 2011 - 2022 DVV Media International Ltd

Personnel Today
  • Home
    • All PT content
    • Advertise
  • Email sign-up
  • Topics
    • HR Practice
    • Employee relations
    • Equality, diversity and inclusion
    • Learning & training
    • Pay & benefits
    • Wellbeing
    • Recruitment & retention
    • HR strategy
    • HR Tech
    • The HR profession
    • Global
    • All HR topics
  • Legal
    • Case law
    • Commentary
    • Flexible working
    • Legal timetable
    • Maternity & paternity
    • Shared parental leave
    • Redundancy
    • TUPE
    • Disciplinary and grievances
    • Employer’s guides
  • AWARDS
    • Personnel Today Awards
    • The RAD Awards
  • Jobs
    • Find a job
    • Jobs by email
    • Careers advice
    • Post a job
  • XpertHR
    • Learn more
    • Products
    • Pricing
    • Free trial
    • Subscribe
    • XpertHR USA
  • Webinars
  • OHW+