How the Workplace Has Been Politicized During the 2020 U.S. Presidential Race

Politics has entered the workplace at full steam heading into the U.S. Presidential elections this November. Conversations around political parties, key issues, and future implications are happening in and out of the workplace whether organizations like it or not. While the political commentary was often reserved for one's personal life, now it's omnipresent, especially with so many Americans working from home. When I was working at a major company, I resisted talking about any issues relating to politics, religion, race, gender, or sex. I considered these topics off-limits because I felt they would create unnecessary tension between myself and my teammates that could harm both my career prospects and relationships. I often said to myself, "work is hard enough, why would I want to complicate it more when I could choose not to?"

But, today these conversations are becoming near impossible to avoid because EVERYTHING has been politicized and there is SO MUCH happening in politics right now. From the death of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg to the Covid-19 pandemic to the upcoming elections, we are bombarded with historical events almost daily. And, everyone has an opinion on these events and topics, which naturally divide employees putting them against each other. The stress and anxiety we feel from self-isolation, social-distancing, financial hardships, illness, and uncertainty have heightened our emotions turning civil conversation into crude ones.

During my conversation with Whole Foods founder and CEO John Mackey for the 5 Questions podcast, I asked him how leaders can focus on operating their businesses, while also being sensitive to the political issues stakeholders care about. John learned a lesson back in 2009 when he wrote an op-ed piece in The Wall Street Journal about healthcare that was controversial. "The world did not distinguish between me and Whole Foods," he explained. "So, when I took a political stand, there was a massive blowback towards the company." This led to him suppressing his political beliefs as a public figure. "You risk alienating most of your customers because people disagree about these things," Mackey said to me.

John admitted that we live in a very complicated and stressful time when more is being expected of companies and their leaders, and the wrong move can hurt the bottom line. "We are in serious white water right now and we're just looking to keep the canoe from capsizing and hitting the rocks and blowing up. It's thrilling sometimes but it's also super dangerous," he said. While John is looking at political matters at a high level, on a day-to-day basis, employees are playing a new form of "office politics" by literally talking about politics, but at their home office! Emotions are running high between workers regardless of their job title, both in person and virtually.

Discussions about politics are happening in your workplace

The social tension caused by the upcoming elections is an unavoidable part of our existence and seeps into our regular workplace discourse. But, it's never been more imperative that we are civilized and respectful when listening to and responding to workers who share their perspectives and opinions. All of these political discussions have been intensified because of the non-stop relentless barrage of articles and TV segments promoting the campaigns. Think about it, when was the last time you avoided talking about Covid-19 when speaking to someone? And, the pandemic is a political topic so you're already starting a conversation that could lead to an argument or negative feelings even if it was unintended.

There's a delicate balance between our First Amendment right to free speech and corporate policies that have to be adhered to. As long as employees are completing their work responsibilities, and following the law, they shouldn't suffer consequences for their political views. Protests and campaigning for a particular candidate are fair game as long as they don't interfere with business. There's also a big legal discrepancy between public and private companies concerning political speech. Employees at private companies can be fired for any reason without warning, while at public companies their speech may be protected depending on the specific matter that arises.

As evidence of how politics has penetrated the workplace watercooler, almost half of American workers report witnessing a political discussion at work that was escalated into a full-blown argument. Discussing politics in itself is isolating and can create massive friction, the type of friction that many workers desperately want to avoid if possible. But, sometimes the temptation is too great, even though it can reduce productivity, make it hard to focus, hurt work relationships and add to the stress we are all collectively feeling right now during Covid.

A full 60 percent of employees, in a Glassdoor study, says that "political discussions are unacceptable and almost one-fourth of both Republicans and Democrats would not want to work with a co-worker who votes for a presidential candidate they don’t like in the upcoming election". A separate Gartner study found that most employees discuss politics at work and half said, "the election is dampening their productivity." Aside from a productivity loss, about one-third worry they could lose their jobs or be passed over for career advancements if their "political opinions become known." Politics at work is a complicated matter because employers wouldn't be so quick to layoff an employee who is in a critical hard-to-replace job because of a political disagreement, but if it disrupts culture then they may reconsider. We spend so much of our day and week working with our colleagues that sometimes we have mistaken them as our personal friends without creating boundaries, especially around politics.

Without time off from work employees can’t vote

There are many obstacles people have to vote in America such as voter ID requirements, polling closures, reduced voting hours, and now Covid-19. The other major obstacle is workers who can't get the time off from work to vote because only about half of the states require employers to give them at least a few hours off to do so. It's one of the most common reasons why almost 100 million Americans don't vote and the U.S. has one of the lowest voting rates of any developed nation.

The U.S. hasn't made Election Day a federal holiday like it is in South Korea and in Israel. As a result of not having an Election Day, non-profit Time to Vote found that 35 percent of nonvoters say that scheduling conflicts with work keep them from getting to the polls. Only 23 of the 50 U.S. states have voter-leave laws mandating that employers provide employees time off to vote during the elections. As evidence to Americans not having time off to vote, SHRM found that in 2018 only 44 percent of employers offered their workers paid time off to vote, up just 2 percent in 2017. By giving employees time off to vote, more Americans will be able to exercise their rights which will improve democracy as a whole.

More companies are supporting American’s right to vote 

Employers can support the political process instead of be a barrier to it.

In response to the added pressure by stakeholders during the 2020 presidential elections, many companies have taking it upon themselves to give their workers time off to vote even though they aren't mandated to. The social and political unrest derived from the systemic inequalities in America has been the tipping point that led companies to support workers' right to vote. Over 1,100 companies have already joined the nonpartisan coalition Time to Vote, where participating companies give "employees access to and information about early voting or vote-by-mail options, offering paid time off on Election Day or making it a day without meetings". Another group, ElectionDay.org, is asking companies to make a voting pledge to increase voter turnout.

When companies promote voting they are in fact making a political statement. But, it's a positive one that reinforces the brand's acknowledgment that voting is part of being American and that they are looking out for their employees, especially during these uncertain times. Starbucks, for instance, has had a long history of making it easier for their workers to vote. In 2008, they offered free coffee to all customers on Election Day. Then in 2016, they used a tool that registered workers to vote. And now, in 2020 they have provided technology tools to equip both their workers and customers with everything they need to register and vote. Apple and Verizon are giving their employees 4-hours off, Walmart 3-hours off and Patagonia is going to be completely closed for business on Election Day. When employers support employees, employees reciprocate with higher levels of productivity.

Employers should set political boundaries

Just like workers have to set boundaries between work and life, employers need to set boundaries on the political issues they are willing to either address or avoid altogether. When speaking to John Mackey, he said that "I don't think you can bury your head in the sand and pretend it's not happening, but you also have to be sensitive that taking political positions at any time is going to upset a lot of people." That's why at Whole Foods, John said they are doubling down on their internal mission to "nourish people on this planet" and making each market an "oasis" from all the "craziness that's out there" while "encouraging them to express that (political beliefs) on their own time and not in our stores". He believes that companies aren't created and grown to solve all the world's problems, and should focus on their mission and core values so they don't "scatter their energy" and end up not accomplishing anything. John says that companies should pick one or two issues that resonate with your organization and concentrate on those instead.

If every organization abided by John's strategy of handling political issues, then when you add up all the one or two issues that every company is tackling, we may live in a much better world and work environment. Staying true to your values, the ones listed on your corporate website, gives you focus, the type of focus required to actually make real change. But, there are a few policies employers can implement right now to support workers' rights during the upcoming election, above giving a few hours or a day off to vote. They can promote that all employees vote, encourage voting by mail, and distribute voting information. These are all low effort activities that can help employees and increase engagement, productivity, and job satisfaction at the same time.

How to discuss politics with your colleagues

While organizations can support workers' right to vote, where things get really messy and complicated are those casual internal political discussions between co-workers. I for one have never talked about politics with a co-worker or client to avoid any unnecessary confrontation that could result in bad feelings and a deterioration of an important relationship that I need to support myself financially. But, that's just me and these conversations are already taking place every second both in remote and physical spaces all over America so it's important to know how to discuss politics with your colleagues. Here's my best advice if you choose to do so:

1. Verify your company policies first. Almost one-third of companies have a policy around political expression. Right now is the best time to verify your company policy before we get closer to the November election. Know what you can and can't say, and the vehicles you can use to express your political beliefs. Don't blindly send emails, texts, and Slack messages because those could be held against you legally or result in your job being terminated.
2. Decide if it's worthwhile talking about politics. Pick and choose your battles wisely is what I always say. If you predict that a certain topic is going to set you off, try to hold back your emotions. You don't have to have a response to every hot button issue your co-workers talk about and can even choose to dismiss it altogether if you're more comfortable doing that. No one can force you into a political conversation.
3. Actively listen to others without interruption. If you decide you want to enter a political conversation, make sure you're present and are listening to what they have to say without cutting them off. When you interrupt someone when they are expressing themselves, the conversation may become more hostile when that could have been avoided in the first place. You'll also have a much better response if you can fully capture their view instead of pieces of it.
4. Respect their views and find common ground. Know that their views are coming from deep beliefs from their family, environment, peer group, and even distilled by the media. Separate their beliefs from the fact that they are a human being just like you and need to be treated with the same care you would want - the golden rule! If you can discover even a single common point of agreement, use that to ensure that the conversation doesn't get out of control.
5. Make sure you end the conversation on a positive note. Don't leave a political conversation with bad feelings that will seep into your work and harm your relationships. Instead, at the end of a political discussion, thank the person for their openness, say that you appreciate their perspectives, and reinforce your common ground on the issue(s). The tone you use is incredibly important to convey a sense of respect and value towards your coworker.

The future of work is political

Everything in America is political now, including the workplace. There's no hiding from it and every single organization has to have a plan and policies in place to monitor and manage political discourse. Much like how companies rushed to develop remote work policies in March, at the start of the Covid pandemic, they now have to do the same with politics. Companies that start right now instead of waiting until November won't have to scramble coming up with the necessary policies. Be offensive, not defensive, when it comes to planning and communicating policies with employees so they aren't guessing what they can and can't say.

As our work lives continue to blend together, it's never been more important to embrace our humanity. That's why even though work has been politicized, it's part of what it means to be living and working in America so we should embrace perspectives from all sides while having the necessary policies to protect individuals and institutions moving forward.

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