The warning follows research, released to coincide with Valentine’s Day, that showed you’re more likely to find would-be Romeo and Juliets in recruitment than in any other industry sector. Job board CV-Library research put recruitment ahead of property and marketing among top five industries for workplace romance.

Dr Sybille Steiner, partner solicitor at law firm Irwin Mitchell, told Recruiter policies on personal relationships at work, while not particularly widespread in the UK can be introduced by asking employees to disclose certain relationships to their employers so safeguards can be put in place, for example to prevent conflicts of interest.

“A failure to comply with such a policy could be a disciplinary offence, although recruiters should follow their normal disciplinary procedures,” Steiner said.

“There may also be rules for those managing others/relationships with subordinates and a policy may include the right to change a person’s manager/reporting line if such an incident occurred. Often policies only require disclosure where there is a risk of a conflict of interest or breach of confidentiality.”

Data protection issues also need to be taken into account when it comes to information being passed between employees in a relationship, while a good policy will also define what is considered “inappropriate conduct”, so as behaviour and communications within the workplace are kept professional, Steiner added.

“The need for confidentiality could also be reiterated in that an employee should not disclose confidential information to their partner, even if they work for the same organisation. Recruiters could also ask that employees inform them if the relationship ends, so that HR/managers can deal with any potential problems this may cause in the workplace.

“It is important that recruiters apply rules consistently and across all protected characteristics to prevent any potential claim of discrimination.”