For July 2025, we have asked the employment team at Tughans LLP to provide practical answers to unusual, sensitive or complex work-related queries. We call this feature “How do I handle it?”

The articles are aimed at HR professionals and other managers who may need to deal, from time to time, with the less commonplace disputes at work; issues that may, if handled incorrectly, lead to claims for discrimination, constructive dismissal or some other serious difficulty. 
 

Pranks, defined as tricks “intended to be funny but not to cause harm or damage”, if allowed to get out of hand can cause harm and damage not only to the targeted individuals, but ultimately to your business.
Camaraderie is an important element in creating a positive workplace culture, as it enhances teamwork, boosts employee well-being and can contribute to productivity. However, it must be understood that what one colleague finds funny, another may find insulting or uncomfortable. 

When ‘banter’ or office pranks overstep the mark, they could be deemed as acts of bullying or harassment. This can cause damage to your business both reputationally and financially. It also has the potential to damage working relationships, lead to an influx of employee grievances and increase attrition. It is therefore crucial to have policies and procedures in place to manage such behaviours. 

Next steps will depend on whether employee(s) have complained/raised a grievance about the pranks. If so, you should carry out an investigation into the allegations in line with your grievance procedure. Following an investigation and depending on the severity of the allegations, you may have to take disciplinary action against the employee(s) responsible for the prank. You should keep a careful note of your investigation and any disciplinary process, particularly during meetings with employees. 

On deciding the correct course of action, you should consider whether the pranks have created a hostile, intimidating or offensive environment for the targeted employee. If so, it is possible that these pranks could amount to harassment. Harassment is linked to protected characteristics including; religious belief or political opinion (which can include a philosophical belief), race, sex (including pregnancy, marital or civil partner status or gender reassignment), sexual orientation, disability, and age. If the pranks directly relate to one or more of these characteristics, the affected colleague may have grounds for a claim for discrimination against the company. Defending tribunal claims are costly and compensation can be significant if the employee succeeds with their claim. For example, with discrimination claims, employees can be awarded a sum of money for “injury to feelings” because of any harassment. If the behaviour complained of constitutes disability discrimination, compensation to the employee is uncapped. 

To help mitigate the risk of claims, a corporate commitment to an inclusive workplace is essential. This should include a vision for an inclusive workplace and how it will be achieved and maintained going forward. You should be aware that, as an employer, you are liable for the actions of your employees during their employment. If you can show that you did not tolerate or accept such behaviour this will help in defending any claim – this could be demonstrated by way of strong internal policies and procedures which should help managers challenge unacceptable behaviour when it arises.
If you have not already done so, you should consider implementing a Diversity, Equality and Inclusion policy and ensuring that management are committed to implementing same. Your procedure should clearly signpost employees to the relevant internal support (for example HR), refer to the relevant informal and formal processes, confirm how to report incidents of harassment and be aligned with your other policies and procedures, particularly your disciplinary policy and any anti-bulling/harassment policy. 

It is not enough, however, to simply have policies and procedures in place. They must be communicated to all employees and related third parties such as contract workers. You should consider holding regular training events to ensure everyone in your organisation understands the level of behaviour expected of them while at work. Many companies are creating diversity and inclusion committees, which can be useful in raising awareness on behavioural standards within your workforce. The committee could also monitor and evaluate your organisation’s performance against these policies and procedures on a regular basis to ensure they are effective and identify areas for improvement.

Overall, having a robust suite of polices in place and prioritising the education of your workforce is key to a harmonious work environment. It is imperative that employees are aware of standards of behaviour expected and the consequences if their behaviour is sub-par.