Following the recent news on McDonald’s Chief Executive, Steve Easterbrook who was fired after having a consensual relationship with one of his employees, it is important for employers to understand how to deal with relationships in the workplace. The Chief Executive was found making “poor judgement” involving a recent a consensual relationship and this “violated the company policy”.
What can employers do to manage workplace relationships?
Having a Code of Conduct policy within your organisation will outline what is and isn’t acceptable within the workplace. It can be difficult to ban workplace relationships since employees have the right to a private life (Humans Rights Act), which also includes personal relationships and they also have a right to privacy (Article 8, Human Rights Act). Therefore, policies that ban workplace relationships may become challenging to deal with.
Nevertheless, it is not unlawful for organisations to have policies on preventing workplace relationships and disclosures of such relationships. But it is important to note, if employers decide to terminate such employment based on breaching such a policy, they must be able to show strong justification. For example, justifying that such relationship genuinely created a conflict of interest.
How can workplace relationships have an impact on the organisation?
If workplace relationships begin to have an impact on employees’ conduct or performance, these matters should be dealt with in a fair and reasonable manner, following the company’s disciplinary or capability procedure.
Reports have shown that ‘office romances have a negative impact on productivity’ (ACAS Future of Workplace Relations). If workplace relationships break down, there are always serious risks including sexual harassment and unfair dismissal claims. Consequently, it is essential employers have zero-tolerance policies on bullying and harassment, and employers must have an understanding on how to tackle these incidents as they arise. Following the “Me Too” movement and high-profile allegations, organisations are becoming more conscious around sexual harassment allegations and many organisations have introduced policies to tackle this.
If your organisation has a policy in place, it is imperative that your policy encourages staff to keep their personal and work lives separate. Additionally, employees should remain professional even if problems arise. Having Equality and Diversity policies will help minimise issues and it is recommended that all employees including management and Directors are fully trained on these policies.
If you require any further advice or support on workplace relationships or whether you wish to have your policies reviewed, please contact Quest today.
