'The View' co-hosts discuss whether office romances are acceptable in the wake of #MeToo

The co-hosts consider the potential outcomes of dating a co-worker.

ByABC News
October 1, 2019, 3:24 PM

What does someone do if they've developed a crush on a co-worker?

"The View" co-hosts discussed on Tuesday the possible issues that can arise in the wake of #MeToo when someone asks a colleague out on a date or engages in an intimate relationship with them. Their conversation was prompted by a similar question that appeared in a column in the NY Post on Sunday.

"[In] the #MeToo era, you’re talking about positions of power. All I know is that all the men in my life who are single won't go near, dating-wise, any woman they work with," Meghan McCain said. "I think the culture we're in right now, they think it's too tenuous for their careers."

VIDEO: Co-worker romances in present-day office
VIDEO: Co-worker romances in present-day office
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"It's a bad idea to date somebody in the office," Sunny Hostin said.

Hostin said her father has called it "professional suicide" to date a co-worker, and spoke about going against his advice once when she was younger.

"I did it anyway when I was younger and worked at a law firm, and then we broke up and then you got to look at the person all the time... Everybody in the office was talking about it," Hostin said.

Suggesting that people today frown on the idea of office romances, Joy Behar said, "In my day — back when dinosaurs roamed the Earth — that's where you met guys. You either met a guy in the office or you dated your cousin from Palermo."

"It was like, who's available," Behar pointed out. "My aunt used to say if you don't meet them in college, you're never going to meet a guy. So I got married in college. Now they're on Tinder, they're on this, they're on fish this. Go fish. Catfish. Plenty of fish," she said jokingly. "If it's your boss, it's a mistake, because you will be fired and he will keep his job."

Given the amount of time people spend at work, it's not uncommon for people to meet someone there who they might want to spend the rest of their life with. Abby Huntsman pointed out that her husband's parents were first introduced to one another at work, but she said that her husband's mother had to resign because of the company's policy.

"It was his mom [that left the company], but she ended up having the two boys and it was a tough decision to make at the time... She left her job to marry. It was true love."

Later on, Huntsman added, "I think people can make their own choices."

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