To what extent should someone’s actions or behaviour OUTSIDE of work affect their position AT work?

Recently, one man made the headlines when he was spotted wearing a potentially offensive t-shirt to the FA Cup final. He was photographed wearing a Manchester United shirt with writing that appeared to refer to the 97 fans who died as a result of the Hillsborough disaster back in 1989. He was eventually charged with displaying threatening or abusive writing likely to cause harassment, alarm or distress.

Should this be brought to the attention of his employer – if it hasn’t been already? And should employees expect any unruly, offensive, or criminal behaviour in their personal lives to have a knock-on effect on their work life?

There’s an argument that any ‘bad’ behaviour could impact an employer’s reputation – but employees will often argue that they are entitled to do whatever they like outside of working hours. As with many things relating to employment law, it often depends on the severity of the case, and whether the employee could have been identifiable at the time, therefore potentially bringing the business in question into disrepute.

If you’re an employer or employee looking for clarity on how to move forward in these kinds of circumstances, contact our team on 01245 261883 for help and advice.