Kissing co-workers

Q: Two co-workers on our small team are dating. Here's the problem: one is a married man, with kids, who is cheating on his wife. The other is a divorced single mom. While this might not be a violation of HR policy, it's making the rest of us uncomfortable and clouding our view of these two colleagues as professionals. What, if anything, can we do?

A: There is an ethical problem here, but it’s not yours. It’s clearly wrong to cheat on your spouse. However, it’s not your responsibility to report the clandestine couple to Human Resources unless the behaviour impacts you directly. You should only become involved if the affair gets in the way of the team’s productivity.
“The reality of the situation is that, especially with small teams, you need to find a way to look beyond the personal behaviour of your colleagues, to put blinders on, so to speak, and just focus on things you can control,” said Thorn Jenness, an executive coach and HR consultant in Huntington, New York.
Although you may find aspects of your colleagues’ personal lives distasteful, or not up to your own moral standards, you can’t let that have any bearing on how you interact with them in a work context. As long as you can do your job, and they can do theirs, whom they date is their own business.