In the article, "Leave the Political Boxing Gloves at the Office Door," featured in the Boston Business Journal, Partner Joe Ambash discusses why you should leave your political opinions out of the workplace.
We love a good political fight in Massachusetts, where politics is sport, and with the "knock 'em down, drag 'em out" tone of this year's presidential primary, we might be tempted to join the fray and throw some rhetorical jabs of our own as the March 1 primary approaches. But we would be well-advised to check the gloves at the office door and instead heed the wisdom offered long ago by Massachusetts favorite son Calvin Coolidge: "No man ever listened himself out of a job."
Mixing work and politics can be a bad career move – not to mention downright dangerous. A CareerBuilder poll of 7,000 full-time workers found that nearly a quarter of politically charged confrontations either end up in bad feelings among co-workers or even physical fights.
No wonder the Society for Human Resource Management reports about 25 percent of employers have written policies proscribing political activities such as party organizing, soliciting campaign donations, posting political signs or holding rallies in common areas. Others frown on employees wearing attire festooned with political buttons or slogans. Still others prohibit workers from using company-sponsored social media to canvass for their favorite causes or candidates.
When keeping a lid on office politicking, it's important for HR directors and their bosses to know the law. It's a myth that employees have a constitutional right to free speech on the job, but whatever bars exist must be clearly articulated and consistently enforced.
To read the full article, please visit the Boston Business Journal.
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