My Blog Site - Does your company have a love contract?

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Does your company have a love contract? (UK)

Another 'curly one' out of the UK.

With rose tinted glasses on it may seem that a work place romance is full of ahhhhs and ohhhhhs but what really is the cost to retailers? It is an unfortunate fact that despite the romantic glow, relationships in a retail environment, whether they flourish or fail, can have a negative impact for employers. When the relationship is going well an Love Contract employer may endure allegations of favouritism from other employees, a slump in production from the starry eyed lovers and confidentiality may become compromised. However, when the relationship turns sour, at best the working environment between the former lovers may become hostile and difficult, but at worst and more seriously, retail businesses may find themselves on the receiving end of a claim for sexual harassment!

To ban or not to ban?

Whilst a complete ban on relationships in a retail environment may be desirable, this is unlikely to work in practice. A ban on relationships will only lead to relationships being carried out in secret and it is difficult to see how an employer can enforce the ban fairly.

What can retailers do?

One option is to ask employees to sign a "love contract". A love contract is a concept that was born in the US and has slowly crossed the Atlantic. A love contract works on the basis that there is an obligation on employees to notify their employer if they form a relationship at work with a colleague. Once the declaration is made, the employees are asked to sign an agreement to confirm that their relationship is consensual and that neither will bring a claim for sexual harassment against the other if the relationship ends. Whilst a love contract may sound like it ticks all the boxes, it is unlikely to prevent a claim for sexual harassment, it may however help an employer to defend a claim.

From a practical perspective there are some steps which an employer can take to make the course of true love run smoother and to minimise the damage when the brakes are applied. Depending on the nature of the business, an employer may be able to transfer one of the employees to another department or branch. For multi-site retailers this is perhaps an option although much depends on the geographical spread of the business. It would be helpful in this situation if there is a contractual right to transfer the employees. In the absence of a contractual right to transfer an employee it would be best to seek the employee's agreement rather than impose a transfer. Even if there is a contractual right, this right must be exercised fairly and reasonably. Which employee will you transfer? This is a question that must also be considered objectively. If an employer, as a matter of practice, always transfers the junior employee then this could lead to a claim for indirect sex discrimination and/or age discrimination if a larger proportion of the junior staff is female or of a particular age group.

http://www.mondaq.com/x/136278/Discrimination+Disability+Sexual+Harassment/Retail+Bulleti n+February+2011+Love+Is+In+The+Air

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