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3 Powerful Ways to Navigate Politics in the Workplace

  • Recursos humanos
  • Artículo
  • Lectura de 6 minutos
  • Last Updated: 03/02/2017


Cómo manejar las charlas de cuestiones políticas en el trabajo.
The whole country is stressed out, regardless of which side of the party line you stand. So how to do you navigate the tough topic of politics while on the job? Check out these tips.

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The whole country is stressed out, regardless of which side of the party line you stand. We’ve just gone through a moment of great political change — which, for a number of reasons, is causing employees some serious stress. According to a recent Paychex survey, 36% of men and 52% of women employees report experiencing elevated stress levels due to the presidential election.

While an organization’s leadership and management can’t necessarily change what’s happening outside the company, you can work to keep things calm inside your own walls. None of these are sweeping structural changes, and they won’t effect your bottom line. But they can help tone down the volume and get everyone back to work.

1. Stay Transparent

Regardless of how you align politically, ethics are ethics, and a clear message is a clear message – and a lack of both can cause a certain kind of discontent. Managers in particular have to make their methods and criteria abundantly clear to this workforce, which has generally been shown to value ethics and honesty.

It’s been well-established that millennials are looking for a workplace with a solid moral compass that aligns with their own. But this generation is growing up and having families now, so their values are evolving too. They are increasingly looking for companies that speak plainly, talk straight, and don’t undermine their own message on the sly, as the recent Deloitte 2017 study on millennials found. Possible approaches: a virtual chat or FAQ in which employees are invited to ask about policies they may not understand or need clarification on. Longstanding grievances sometimes start with a misunderstanding or a confusion. By taking the time to clarify, you’re sending a message that their understanding and input is important.

2. Keep It Positive

Too much arguing around the water cooler – virtual or not – can trigger some heady arguments, bringing the national stress levels back inside. Given that it’s rare for both sides of a political argument to find common ground, such conflicts can create some seriously disgruntled employees and damage the social cohesion of the office.

Instituting a “no political arguments” policy may seem a bit on the “police-y” side, but in a time of intense turmoil, it’s good to be able to step back and point to a rule to shut something down — before it can do too much damage. There will be employees that thank you, as well.

3. Don’t Renege On Your Own Promises

Most front-of-the-pack workplaces were on their way to evolving in terms of such issues as work/life balance before this year’s election happened. We spent the past few years learning about the need for diversity and inclusion, the problem with workplace bullying, and the importance of valuing employees as people with lives — a key characteristic of millennial culture. The Paychex WORX research also found that 58% of men and 67% of women believe the election results are having a negative impact on their own work/life balance.

Now’s the time to set up those flexible work hours or telecommuting options for new parents – or increase parental leave time — whatever ideas were in the pipeline. Another option: set up a Life Logistics Day, when stressed-out employees can take a deep breath and finally get the chance to ask an expert about a pressing issue — health care benefits, insurance, retirement accounts.

We’re a constantly connected culture now, and it’s impossible to isolate ourselves from the shrill or the unpleasant — a quick dive into social media can suddenly plummet one’s mood. The political climate has become increasingly polarized, which can mean increasing conflicts: one person’s protest is another person’s praise. Certainly we can’t take everyone’s smartphones away, after all — and no would we want to in a thriving democracy. On the other hand, the workforce has a job to do. Demonstrating that you value your employees and take a compassionate approach to their state of mind right now will go far to keeping them focused, no matter which side they are on.

Meghan Biro headshot
Meghan M. Biro is a globally recognized Talent Management and Tech brand strategist, analyst, author, and speaker. She is also founder and CEO of TalentCulture.

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* Este contenido es solo para fines educativos, no tiene por objeto proporcionar asesoría jurídica específica y no debe utilizarse en sustitución de la asesoría jurídica de un abogado u otro profesional calificado. Es posible que la información no refleje los cambios más recientes en la legislación, la cual podrá modificarse sin previo aviso y no se garantiza que esté completa, correcta o actualizada.

Acerca de Paychex

Paychex fue fundada hace más de cuatro décadas para aliviar la complejidad de dirigir un negocio y facilitar la vida de nuestros clientes a fin de que puedan centrarse en lo que más importa.

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