Employment Matters January 2008

Office Romances

Personal relationships at work have always been taboo, largely because they are seen to interfere with the day-to-day running of a business. However, this doesn’t seem to deter amorous couples as a recent survey by careerbuilder.co.uk found that more than 55% of the employees surveyed had dated someone who worked for the same company, although almost half of those had tried to keep it a secret from their employer!

The figures are not surprising. Employees are spending more and more time together, not just because long hours are now part of Britain’s culture, but also because socialising outside work is encouraged as part and parcel of team-building and business development. Furthermore, businesses will often employ those who share the same interests and goals with the result that the workplace can be the best place for single employees to find a long-term, compatible partner.

The Price of Love
So how do office romances affect the workplace? Some of the perils include confidential information about clients, projects and the business’ finances becoming the subject of “pillow talk.” Public displays of affection between colleagues at work might also compromise the authority and reputation of an employer in the eyes of both its staff and customers or clients.

A relationship where one of the parties is in a position of authority can be particularly problematic as that authority is likely to be compromised, for example when one partner is a manager and reviews the other partner’s performance in an appraisal. The media only recently reported that Paul Wolfowitz, president of the World Bank, had resigned from his position after it emerged that he had arranged a substantial pay rise and promotion for an employee of the bank who was also his girlfriend.

Couples who are in the first flush of a relationship are also likely to be easily distracted by one another, wasting company time. It was reported in one particular case that a company was taking a former employee to court for a large sum of money because he had neglected his duties during the course of an affair with a colleague. It was alleged that he had cost his employer almost £470,000.

In addition to the practical difficulties, employers are also vulnerable to tribunal claims when employees decide to pair up. A claim for sex discrimination (which can lead to uncapped compensation for the claimant) has the potential to arise in a number of different situations. For example, if a woman is treated less favourably as a result of an affair with her boss or because she is married to a colleague she could argue direct sex discrimination. In such a case the employer would have to show that there was a non discriminatory reason for the treatment - that the employer needed to address an actual or perceived conflict of interests and did not take action on the grounds of the employee’s sex.

An employer should be especially careful when a relationship turns sour. Any refusal by one ex-partner to grant the other a promotion or a pay rise could be interpreted as revenge for ending the relationship and result in a claim for constructive dismissal if the employee decided to resign as a result. Any disciplinary action taken by the manager against the junior employee could be tinged with bias and result in a claim of unfair dismissal. In a recent case, a solicitor who had a relationship with his personal assistant later sacked her because she started seeing someone else. He avoided a finding of sex discrimination but the dismissal was judged to be unfair because the reason for the termination of her employment was his jealousy of her new relationship. Further, unwanted sexual advances by either party in an attempt to rekindle the affair could lead to a claim for sexual harassment.