Do law firms need a ‘Valentine's Day clause' in their sexual harassment policy?

In an age of sociocultural change, and against the backdrop of employers' positive duties to prevent sexual harassment and other forms of misconduct, preparing for workplace claims made against the backdrop of cultural traditions like Valentine's Day may not be so far-fetched.

In this episode of The Lawyers Weekly Show, host Jerome Doraisamy welcomes back Swaab partner Michael Byrnes to reflect on a recent blog he posted about the workplace relations issues inherent with Valentine's Day, the potential for workplace claims to arise in the wake of such cultural traditions, and whether employers need clauses in their policy for sexual harassment to account for such calendar dates.

Byrnes also delves into employers' positive duty to prevent sexual harassment, changing social and cultural expectations for workplace behaviour, whether the inclusion of new clauses risks infantilising employees, catering to a multi-generational workforce, and what will constitute best practice for employers, HR professionals, and employment lawyers.

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For further information please contact:

Michael Byrnes, Partner
Phone: + 61 2 9233 5544
Email: mjb@swaab.com.au

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