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PODCAST | Should casual office chat be banned?

Should casual office chat be banned?

 

Creating an inclusive company culture is a top priority for HR. Not only does it mean that staff will be happier, but employers are also likely to see an uptick in engagement and overall productivity – which has huge business benefits.

In a bid to make office conversation more inclusive, the Chartered Management Institute’s Head, Anne Francke, said that football chat should be banned from the workplace because it acts as a ‘gateway to more laddish behaviour’. She said that, while she has no issue with sports fans and enthusiasts, she feels that “a lot of women, in particular, feel left out”.

In this week’s podcast, HR Grapevine’s Online Editor, Sophie Parrott, sits down with Kieran Howells, Deputy Editor at Executive Grapevine Digital Media, to discuss whether non-work related conversations should be prohibited at work. The pair take an in-depth look at HR Grapevine’s recent coverage of the controversial story: Should employers ban office football chat? Additionally, the pair explore the impact that a ban of this description can have, whether it is indicative of poor company culture, whether it can strain the employer-employee relationship and the impact it can have on productivity.

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