Relationships at work

Listening to the radio I came across a short consideration of whether it is right to have intimate relationships with work colleagues.
It seems ridiculous that people would consider it wrong. A person's private and intimate relationships are his own business, and nothing to do with his working life. The problem is that we wish to prevent favouritism and unjust promotions (or demotions/stagnation). The problem, then, should be addressed itself, rather than being tracked back to a potential source.

People can treat their colleagues fairly, whether or not they are in intimate relationships. We have workplace rules against bullying, and laws against both discrimination and harrassment. These are quite sufficient: if a person proves himself to be so incompetent that he cannot separate a relationship from his work, and breaks these rules, then he is to be punished.

I see no need to take a step back to try to 'save him from himself' and setp into his private life, and the private lives of other, more self-controlled people. It is an injustice perpetrated on them to have their lives ruled by the potential weaknesses of others. If a person knows himself to be weak, he might impose a rule on himself, but there should be no societal rule.

The idea that a person having a relationship is being dodgy is jumping the gun a little, and very repulsive. It is judging a person before the crime has been committed, rather like assuming that every Swiss man is a murderer because he owns a gun (I choose Switzerland because military service compels them to own a gun, although I think that these are stored in secure locations).