Politics in the Workplace: Unwanted or Unavoidable?
Despite our best intentions, it can be hard to separate politics and real-life events from who we are at work. Setting boundaries between the two is still important - you don’t always want to be thinking about work at home and vice versa. But having to conceal all of what affects us about real-life at work can be suffocating, and it can prevent us from being our full selves.
Belonging is the feeling of being accepted, heard, and able to bring your full self to work. It leads to more innovative solutions, employee engagement, authenticity, and an overall happier workplace. When tumultuous real-life topics like politics cross into the workplace, it’s how you address them as a leader that makes people feel they belong.
Here are our best practices for how leaders can address politics at work in ways that are safe, empathetic and inclusive.
Observe the impact that politics has on your team
As a leader, it helps to be aware of events in the sociopolitical climate that could be impacting your team. These added stressors can impact satisfaction, productivity, and focus at work. Keep an eye out for tension and political topics that come up in conversations.
Avoid staying silent
With increased political polarization over the years, you might feel inclined to prohibit politics from the workplace entirely to prevent conflict and divided opinions. But sweeping everything under the rug immediately can stifle your people’s feelings and sense of belonging. Also, not every person is equally impacted or affected by politics. It’s not going to be equally easy for each person to separate politics from their work. Make sure to acknowledge how some will feel passionately and deeply about these issues when you address your team.
Not sure how to start? Here’s our resource on how to make a statement, lead a discussion, and provide genuine support.
Avoid bombarding others with political news
Being silent on political events can be negative for your team, but so can bombarding them with constant updates. Social media makes it easy to access the news at any time. So it’s also important to resist the urge to constantly share your own knowledge, predictions and analysis. Try to strike a healthy balance between the two ends - acknowledge that political news is important for many, and be sensitive to how others might respond to constant updates from (potentially) toxic news cycles.
Encourage constructive dialogue with rules in place
In a survey by SHRM, 80% of HR professionals reported that their organizations did not have rules in place for talking about politics at work. If you have the capacity, it can be helpful to have a discussion with rules in place, that airs out tensions people may be experiencing. Not everyone will want to participate - some people do prefer the strict divide between work and real-life, and that’s completely fine.
As a leader, it’s okay to have a political stance (most people do!), just make sure you’re not endorsing it to others or making them feel like they have to agree with you. Start by outlining the purpose of each discussion before it begins. Emphasize your company policies regarding safe workplaces, bullying, harassment, etc. Remind people that there are shared frustrations on all sides and political differences do not mean that there is no common ground. The goal isn’t to debate sides, it’s to exchange perspectives and reach a greater shared understanding.
Here are some useful guidelines for civil conversations around politics:
Respect for each other should take precedence. Make it clear that there is no room for hurtful remarks or other discrimination.
Encourage people to think of each other in terms of their colleague relationships and not which party they support.
Each person must have the opportunity to be heard. Others must actively listen while they are speaking.
People will have different levels of participation. To prevent those that participate more from dominating the conversation, a turn-based discussion is best.
Encourage speakers to avoid overgeneralizations or “the blame game” - such as pinning the blame of an entire issue on a political party. This is an easy way to start conflict.
If the conversation veers towards argumentative instead of productive, de-escalate tensions by giving people space and an opportunity to reflect. If something inappropriate was said, call it out in a one-on-one conversation and explain how it breaks company policies.
Fostering open-mindedness and practicing conscious communication can help to extend empathetic and intentional communication to the broader workplace. Learn more about conscious communication here.
. . .
Takeaway: Prioritize compassion and empathy
In conversations that are and aren’t about politics, empathy is a must-have. As a leader, model the kind of behavior you want to see from others and keep your guidelines around inclusive political conversation top-of-mind. Support your team collectively and individually. If you need to reach out one-to-one to someone that might be struggling, here’s how to support a colleague.