Yes, you can regulate romance in the workplace. But there’s a right way and a wrong way.
Workplace romance started around the time a couple named Adam and Eve teamed up at a company called Eden Gardens. Pairings like that have been trouble ever since.
Coupling up at work often ends in charges of sexual harassment, hostility or favoritism – and you’re often the one who has to deal with it.
In frustration, you may be tempted to regulate romance in your workplace, but that’s probably a bad idea, and could end up with you and the company getting hit with an invasion-of-privacy complaint by one or more lovebirds.
But that doesn’t mean your hands are tied or that you just have to sit around and wait for the inevitable explosion when a relationship goes bad. Consider, instead, that you can institute a policy that protects you and your employer.
The contract
We’ll call it a “love contract,” although you no doubt can come up with a better name. Essentially, it’s a document signed by employees who are in a relationship at work. In it, they agree:
— their relationship is voluntary and consensual.
— to abide by your anti-discrimination, anti-harassment, and workplace-conduct policies.
— to report any perceived harassment to you if it occurs.
— to behave professionally and not to allow the relationship to affect their work.
— to avoid behavior that offends others in the workplace.
— not to engage in favoritism.
A little heavy-handed? Maybe. But not nearly so bad as dealing with a complaint that results from not having a policy.
