Office romances often drum up images of long looks across the workplace and issues within teams, and for good reason. According to Business and Legal Resources, workplace relationships have long been seen as risky for companies because they can lead to the perception of favoritism, especially if one of the people in the relationship is a higher-up, as well as the inevitable question of what would happen if the couple breaks up. When it comes to workforce management, HR professionals know all too well that they need to take a clear stance on office romances to prevent any confusion among employees and management about where the company stands on the issue, especially in regards to liability. However, according to Inc. magazine, many younger workers may not consider workplace dating to be a no-no. It's essential that HR professionals know how to properly handle interoffice relationships to prevent liability issues.
Here are some of the best ways HR professionals can manage workplace romances:
Establish an official policy against romance
While this may seem to be a no-brainer, many employers lack concrete policies about interoffice relationships. Only 42 percent of companies said in 2013 that they had written or verbal workplace romance policies in place, according to the Society for Human Resource Management. While this is an increase from 2005 when only 20 percent had these policies, the majority of companies should have such policies in place.
Knowing the company's rules about interoffice dating is important for employees, as these policies give workers a guideline of how they can act in the workplace. According to CBS News, many staff members look to their employee handbooks for the company's position on this issue, and so having official policies in available materials can give workers guidance of what is and is not acceptable. HR professionals can even implement a policy that allows workplace relationships in certain circumstances and lays down the need for involved parties to sign written disclosures about the romance.
Know an interoffice relationship will likely happen
When workers interact with one another on a daily basis, chances are feelings will grow between some members of the workforce. HR professionals need to be prepared for this type of situation to occur, even if the company does have a written policy in place preventing such relationships. Readying for the worst is the best plan of action for HR departments, according to CBS News. Effective workforce management requires HR professionals to understand which types of relationships are most damaging.
Evren Esen, manager of SHRM's Survey Research Center, told Entrepreneur HR professionals should consider relationships between members of a same team to be more harmful than romance between those in different departments. It's all about proximity, Esen noted, as the closer workers are in the workplace, the more dangerous the relationship is.
Understand how to step in
HR professionals should know when and how they will get involved in an interoffice relationship situation if it is brought into the open. For one, the human resources professional needs to determine when it is acceptable to confront or talk to employees about a workplace romance. Rumors can be just speculation in certain instances, and some employees may feel the need to stifle speech about their relationships because they want to hide it from HR professionals. It can be tricky to determine when HR representatives should take rumors as evidence of the possibility of a relationship, but HR professionals should step in when there is enough evidence to suggest that a workplace romance is taking place.
This is where having a written policy comes in. HR professionals shouldn't be afraid to enforce the company's policy on workforce relationships, and have a written disclosure contract in their back pockets if the type of relationship has already been deemed acceptable.