Valentine’s Day at Work – What is Appropriate and What Isn’t 

If you were to look at an old television commercial from the 1950’s, you will probably notice that the role of women in American society was a rather limited one. This, of course, changed starting with the cultural upheaval of the 1960’s and into the feminist era of the 1970’s. Part of what came out of this era was a number of rules regarding proper conduct in the workplace in the form of punitive actions regarding sexual harassment. One such result of this has been a ripple effect that touches various aspects of conduct in the workplace. There are those people, however, who feel they can drop the veneer of proper conduct during Valentine’s Day as if the holiday provides them special dispensation from rules of proper conduct. Let’s be blunt: it does not! 

In general, Valentine’s Day is a somewhat benign holiday that is based on the notion of love, charity and goodwill. To a certain extent, it comes off as a sort of “Christmas light” with the focus of the holiday narrowed to expressions of affection towards loved ones. While this would seem like a holiday based on personal expression, the fact remains much of the holiday is public in the sense that it remains highly popular in regards to commercialization. So, it becomes difficult to avoid expressions of Valentine’s Day in the workplace unless the workplace has outright banned any mention of the holiday. Sadly, there are a number of workplace environments that have made such bans and this is really overkill as all that is really required during the season is to simply apply some common sense approaches to what is and what is not appropriate in the workplace during Valentine’s Day. 

When it comes to celebrating Valentine’s Day at work it is best to provide generic Valentine’s Day cards and gifts. These gifts should not be amorous or partake in bad taste humor. In other words, the affection that is displayed in celebrations of Valentine’s Day with co-workers should remain somewhat generic. Also, if you are going to celebrate this holiday in the office it is best to celebrate with everyone and not single a certain co-worker out as this could develop into what can be described as an uncomfortable moment. 

Conversely, it would be wildly inappropriate to send off color cards or explicit items that are clearly not acceptable in the workplace. Additionally, it is never wise to single out a specific employee and use Valentine’s Day of expressing an unrequited crush. This will clearly get you in trouble and it will create an embarrassing situation. What needs to be kept in mind here is that the workplace is not a person’s home and the individual needs to follow accepted levels of behavior as Valentine’s Day is not meant as a means of “cover” for unprofessional or amorous activities. This type of behavior will never be acceptable under any circumstances so it should clearly be avoided. As such, the best approach to take during this holiday is one of politeness and professionalism. This will keep you out of trouble!