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Valentine’s Day is a time for romance…and a time to think about company policy on dating. Why? One reason is the prevalence of co-workers dating each other. SHRM found that 33% are or have been involved in such relationships, which is 6% more than pre-pandemic levels. Maybe that’s good, but what happens if things go bad in the relationship, or if the relationship is a serious problem, such as one involving sexual harassment. Where does this leave employees and the company? It makes sense to set a company dating policy. The following is an update on a blog run a number of years ago.
About office romances
It’s a fact that office romances are common, and may be problematic. During the pandemic when many employees worked off-site, office romances were not a big issue. Now that employees have returned to the office full-time or at least some fixed days each month, dating likely is more common. Nearly 85% of affairs outside of marriage start at work. Nearly one in five (18%) said a workplace romance negatively impacted their career.
About dating policies
Is it legal for an employer to prohibit or otherwise govern dating in the workplace? According to RocketLawyer, “In most states, employers can prohibit or restrict dating in the workplace. In some places, an employer may not prohibit coworkers from dating, but may prohibit a manager and subordinate from dating one another.”
Assuming you want to create a dating policy for your company, what should you be thinking about?
Consider what restrictions to impose. If you decide to have a dating policy, check state law about what you can and cannot include in the policy. Consider whether to bar dating between employees in the same department or between supervisors and subordinates. Meta employees are only permitted to ask a co-worker out once. If the answer is no (even an ambiguous one such as “I’m busy” or “I can’t tonight”), this bars any further dating requests.
Draft a consensual relationship agreement if desired. This may sound very legalistic, but it certainly bars any future objections that one party was coerced into dating. Obviously, signing the agreement cannot be a condition of employment. You can find template for this online (search for “consensual relationship agreement” or “love contract”). SHRM has a sample consensual relationship agreement for employees involved in a relationship. Be sure your attorney reviews it before you put it into use.
Determine consequences for policy violations. If you do set policy, then also spell out what happens to employees who violate the policy. At Amazon, violating its dating policy can result in various measures, including termination.
Whether or not you institute a dating policy, it is essential that you have a sexual harassment policy, instruct employees about it, and provide training. Here’s a sample policy from HR that you can adapt for your purposes.
Final thought
Actress/singer Pearl Bailey said: “What the world really needs is more love and less paperwork.”
Tread lightly between rules that protect employees and the company from adverse results when employees’ relationships go bad versus depressing romance.
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