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ROCKFORD, Ill. (WIFR) - The 2024 United States presidential election is shaping up to be one of the most controversial, and that could create issues for employees in the workplace.
Experts say dealing with politics in the workplace is tricky – possibly affecting their brand, reputation, and values. But, they also hope companies understand their rights to restrict discussion about the election during the work day. Suzanne Degges-White with Northern Illinois University says politics is still a topic that is still too hot to talk about in the workplace. Human resource leaders say employers should be fully prepared to act quickly to alleviate issues with political chatter.
“Research has shown that when politics are apart of the workplace environment, productivity goes down,” says Degges-White.
According to an annual employer survey report, 87% of company executives are worried about managing political and social beliefs among their employees.
“When someone is berating the candidate they pull for, the party they belong to, we take it very personally and it can land us in places of emotional distress and psychological distress,” explains Degges-White.
A small disagreement can lead to a heated argument and experts say that can impact moral and working relationships.
“Someone that you’re sharing your office space with and there isn’t any guidelines from a company, I think that’s where it can get that feeling of avoidance, either avoidance of interacting with a person or I guess in an extreme case, an avoidance of wanting to come into work,” says Kevin Polky, a licensed clinical social worker.
Degges-White also says a hostile work environment can even jeopardize an individual’s career path.
“In the workplace world, we really need to prioritize the relationships we have with our workmates and it’s about the work we’re doing. It’s not about what we believe, it’s not about religion, it’s not about politics, it’s about what we believe about the job we’re doing,” says Degges-White.
Experts say that an enforced policy that limits certain political activities and political speech can help increase worker productivity and contribute to a better workplace. Employers can restrict political speech and activities that occur during work hours as long as the restrictions account for the exceptions made by federal, state, and local laws.
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