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Office banter gets serious

An increasing number of small or medium-sized employers are leaving themselves open to legal action by failing to be aware of the level of sexism, swearing and shouting in their workplace, a specialist business insurer has warned.

A staggering 70% of UK workers claim bad behaviour is rife in their place of work, and admit the regular occurrence of racist jokes, arguments and bullying may offend colleagues.

Specialist business insurer, Hiscox, which conducted the research, said its survey revealed a difference in employers’ view of office antics compared with that of their employees.

Employers displayed little concern about the threat of legal action being taken by disgruntled employees who do not appreciate the ‘office banter.’

The research revealed that 87% of SME bosses say staff need to be ‘grown up’ over office antics, and 82% believe there is nothing wrong with office banter. Almost half, 42%, of those surveyed said they do not consider it to be their responsibility to regulate it. But their employees disagree, with 51% stating their boss should do more to address unacceptable behaviour.

The international law firm, Eversheds, has also entered the debate issuing its own warning to SME employers. Audrey Williams, partner and head of discrimination law at the law firm, said: ‘Employers must be aware that they carry the legal responsibility for such behaviour where an employee finds comments offensive or embarrassing. While the law is there to protect against unacceptable behaviour, it does also recognise that each individual has different tolerance levels.'

During the Christmas party season, office banter can get out of control. Callum Taylor, small business expert at Hiscox, said: ‘This is a year round issue but one that will become particularly relevant in the office Christmas party season, particularly with many companies opting to cut costs and have their celebrations in the office.’

01/12/2009