Q&A: I’ve just found out two of my employees are in a relationship. What should I do?

It’s Valentine’s Day, which means there might be cards and flowers flying around the workplace in the spirit of February 14th. But what do you do if an employee tells you they’re in a real relationship with a colleague?

We ask one of our employment law experts what you should do if you face this awkward HR dilemma.

Question:

One of my managers has made me aware that he’s begun a relationship with another employee, and I’m concerned this creates a conflict of interest when it comes to such things as promotions or performance reviews.

What can I do? Is it possible to ban workplace relationships?

Our HR’s expert’s answer:

Article 8 of the Human Rights Act clearly sets out everyone’s right to have a ‘private life’. This includes personal relationships, and means that having a relationship with a colleague shouldn’t be a sackable offence.

As a result, trying to place a ban on workplace relationships could land you in hot water. For starters, a ban would be difficult to enforce, and would likely result in secrecy surrounding relationships...

And if you did sack someone on the grounds of a personal relationship, you could find yourself facing a claim of unfair dismissal.

So banning relationships isn’t a good idea. Instead, create a workplace relationships policy. Most workplace relationship policies include two key elements:

• All employees need to tell their manager of any relationship that could affect their work or compromise the business in any way.
• If two employees are in a relationship, it might be necessary for them to work separately to avoid any potential conflict of interest.

In your situation, it appears your employee is trying to do the right thing by telling you about the relationship, so work with him to see if there’s a risk of a conflict of interest, and look at whether you need to make any changes at work.

Got a question of your own?

If you have a question about managing workplace relationships, speak to one of our friendly legal experts today.

Whether you need a quick answer to a niggling question or advice in an HR crisis, our advisers will give you confidential legal advice on any employment law problem you face, and they’re available 24/7.

Call BrightAdvice on 0800 783 2806.