Politics and the Workplace: What is an Employer to Do?
According to a Senior Human Resource Specialist of a large company, Karen Codere, business owners should establish guidelines that allow employees to discuss the issues but also allow others to opt out. And it looks like the recently published American Management Association 2008 Political Discussions in the Workplace Survey, supports Codere's assertion. The results of this survey show that 39 percent of business people say they are comfortable with discussing political views in the workplace, while 35 percent of those surveyed said they are uncomfortable discussing their political views with colleagues.
Codere believes employees have a right to free expression, but she also knows, "The courts have said that you're allowed to have a workplace that's not political." Instead, says Codere, the key to overcoming this juxtaposition is to have a "clear well-crafted policy of what's permitted." The problem is, according to 57 percent of the senior executives who participated in the aforementioned survey, no written policy exists at their companies prohibiting the distribution or posting of material endorsing a political party or candidate.
What are the Potential Problems that Could Occur if Employers Allow Politics in the Workplace?
Without a policy addressing politics in the workplace, Codere says several potential problems like the following could occur:
· Hurt feelings about a remark made against a favorite candidate – of both customers and employees
· Loud and angry debates of ideology between employees and among employees and customers
· Souring of a workplace's spirit of community
· The filing of a serious complaint.
Codere also points out managers must stay out of political conversations in the workplace. She iterates, "Just like in the situation of a manager dating an employee in the workplace, an employee can use the company management's statement of political preference as a basis for a harassment or a 'retaliatory claim' like, 'they knew I was not voting for candidate X and that is why they fired me.'"
What Might a Policy Concerning Politics in the Workplace Contain?
In order to avoid the potential issues listed above, Codere advocates developing a policy detailing the company's guidelines on political activities and discussions in the workplace. Such a policy could include the following stipulations, suggested by Codere, but should be customized for your company:
· Political discussions during non-work time, including break time or in the lunch room may be okay as long as the policy clearly defines where those events take place, but discussions on the production floor may not be. ("You're paying employees to work," says Codere.)
· Campaign buttons and the like should be left at home, especially for employees who deal face-to-face with customers. (Codere gives the example here that a buyer who backs one candidate may not appreciate your salesperson's opposing candidate's button.)
· Each employee should remember they have a right to say, "I don't want to talk about the election."
Codere concludes with this statement regarding employee election rules, "Most employees really get it. They respect each other's views." The policy simply serves as protection in case they don't, so consider writing your own.
By Cara Whedbee, Ph.D.
