A new reader survey finds most HR professionals accept workplace relationships as inevitable – but experts warn that without early disclosure and careful management, even consensual romances can unravel teams, careers and reputations
Workplace relationships are as old as the office itself – and, according to a new poll of HR and people management professionals, most practitioners have accepted that fact.
But accepting that relationships happen is only the beginning of the challenge. The harder question is what HR teams are actually supposed to do about them.
The reader poll, conducted across HRD’s audience between February and April 2026, found that three in five respondents accept workplace relationships on the condition that neither party is in a direct reporting line over the other, while only one in eight opposed them entirely.
Speaking ahead of her session at the upcoming HRD Employment Law Masterclass Melini Pillay, principal at McCabes Lawyers and a seasoned advisor on workplace conduct, said starting point is straightforward: prohibiting romantic relationships outright is neither realistic nor likely to be lawful.
What organisations can and should do, she argues, is create clear pathways for early disclosure.
"Romantic relationships are unlikely to be avoided by prohibitive workplace instructions. What we need to encourage is early disclosure with HR, so that appropriate mechanisms can be put in place that protect all persons – including...
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