The use of the emojis and WhatsApp messages in the workplace has taken centre stage in the sexual harassment hearing against Eastern Cape Judge President Selby Mbenenge. Closing arguments were presented before the tribunal on 21 October 2025.

Under consideration is whether the emojis exchanged in the WhatsApp messages between the parties were used with the intention of conveying the standardised meaning attached. Given possible misinterpretation and mixed understanding around the use of emojis, Unicode and Emojipedia were cited as reference sources for the Tribunal to understand what emojis mean.

Emojis are a reality in our workplaces and have rapidly replaced the use of text as a response on a range of digital platforms such as WhatsApp, Outlook, Teams, Zoom, and Facebook, among others.

The use of emojis is changing the way we communicate in our workplace. Whilst they introduce an element of casualness, they can often be misunderstood and have the potential to create harm.

Factors such as age, culture, and context can impact how one interprets emojis. Much to my children’s embarrassment, I too have found myself at the wrong end of the inappropriate use of emojis on our family WhatsApp group and been wisely reminded that: ‘Context is everything mum!’

Context is indeed everything, and whilst emojis may be fun and acceptable on our family and friends’ WhatsApp groups, they are proving to be challenging in the work context. Our workplaces are a melting pot of cultures, generations, languages, and belief systems. A fruit emoji to one person may be offensive to another.

If we say ethics is about balancing what is good for both the self and the other, how we communicate with others through these emerging digital platforms affects others. So, we need to be mindful of how we, as organisations as well as people in organisations, use emojis on digital platforms so as not to create harm to others.

Even something which may be considered small, like reacting with a laughing emoji or a thumbs-up to an inappropriate comment on a work WhatsApp group, could be construed as offensive.

I recently listened to a webinar on the use of emojis in the workplace. The speakers called for an increase in, or updating of, policies to regulate the use of emojis or perhaps even to ban the use of emojis on workplace WhatsApp groups and emails.

So, are policies the answer, or does it go beyond that?

While rules and policies can give employees valuable clarity on what is acceptable, we should be careful not to create a policy for everything.   The conversation around the use of emojis is more meaningful than regulating it.

The values of an organisation are central to this discussion. Organisational values set out what the organisation stands for, and reflects the DNA of the organisation. In organisations with a strong values base, values are easily understood and lived by everyone.

Rather than restricting or curtailing employees’ use of digital platforms, organisations could, as part of their efforts to build an ethical culture, provide guidance and set out communication principles to proactively encourage the responsible use of emojis and digital platforms.  This could include: consider the context, be sensitive, be mindful, act in line with company values, etc.

Using TEI’s Governance of Ethics Framework as a base, some practical ways in which this could be done include:

• Leaders can encourage discussions in their teams around the responsible use of digital platforms, emojis, etc.
• The values set out in the Code of Ethics can be linked to responsible communication.
• Raise awareness around the responsible use of digital platforms.
• Run campaigns on the responsible use of digital platforms – ‘pause before send’. This could be coupled with discussions around considerations before using an emoji: Is it relevant, appropriate, necessary?
• Ethical decision-making – Would I be comfortable if the message I am about to post were published on the front page of the newspaper?

By focusing on empowering employees to communicate effectively, whether through text, voice, or emojis, organisations are better able to encourage employees to act responsibly, out of conscience and conviction rather than as a matter of compliance.

The use of emojis on digital communication platforms is part of our workplace reality and is rapidly evolving.

As ethics practitioners, we can find creative ways, as part of our ethics management efforts, to encourage its responsible use in line with organisational values, towards the outcome of building an ethical culture so that everyone is on the same page 👍 😉

Fatima Rawat is Senior Ethics Subject Matter Expert at The Ethics Institute.