Question:
I’ve kept my political views under wraps at work for months. I work with hardcore never-Trumpers. Early on, when a coworker asked me who I’d vote for, I sidestepped and said I didn’t like Trump. That was easy enough. I didn’t. I just liked Harris less.
Things went sideways Wednesday. Many of my coworkers arrived for work wearing black. They huddled in the hallways, each other’s offices and the breakroom. They shared stories of sitting curled into balls on their couches, howling, or collapsing in heaps, clutching chocolate for comfort. Then, a colleague noticed I wasn’t joining in the misery and said, “Wait, did you vote for Trump? My silence gave me away.
No one’s attacking me, but they’re treating me like I’m an enemy. I asked my manager for guidance, and he said it would “blow over.” Do you have guidance?
Answer:
In the wake of a charged election, emotions run high and are especially raw for those who saw their candidate lose. Start with empathy—for the pain, shock, grief, and anger your coworkers feel. Your coworkers may fear the future. A poll from the Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research revealed nine in 10 voters in each party feared democracy might suffer if the other candidate won, https://apnews.com/article/democracy-2024-election-trump-biden-poll-39309519c8473175c25ab5a305e629ba.
You might begin with a simple, “I’m sorry for your loss.” You may be able to tell them you share many of their negative feelings about Trump if that’s true, but choose your words carefully. They’re grieving, and you’re not.
Here’s the challenge you and employees in many workplaces face. We’ve been become divisively polarized as a nation, split into the “in group” (you think like me) and the “out group.” Pew Research Center surveys document we tend to interact with those who share their political views, which creates echo chambers in which discussions reinforces rather than challenges beliefs, https://www.pewresearch.org/journalism/2020/02/05/a-sore-subject-almost-half-of-americans-have-stopped-talking-politics-with-someone/.
Further, those in the “in group” may harbor hostile thoughts about those who don’t hold their beliefs. Research outlined in “Fear and Loathing across Party Lines” https://www.jstor.org/stable/24583091, documents that “in group” members may even view hostility toward those in the “enemy camp” as justified.
More than half (52 percent) of U.S. employees report that sharing their political opinions with coworkers can damage working relationships, https://www.hibob.com/blog/politics-at-work/. Two out of every five employees (40 percent) feel resentment toward their boss or coworkers after discussing political views, https://buddypunch.com/blog/handle-political-discussions-workplace/. One out of every five (20 percent) employees report their coworkers or peers have treated them poorly because of their political views, https://www.shrm.org/about-shrm/press-room/press-releases/pages/shrm-study-reveals-20-percent-of-workers-mistreated-due-to-political-views.aspx. Further, one in every four (24 percent) of U.S. employees have experienced either negative or preferential treatment on the basis of their political opinions in 2022, compared to 12 percent in 2019, https://www.shrm.org/about/press-room/shrm-study-reveals-20-workers-mistreated-due-to-political-views.
The answer? We need to go beyond “this will blow over.” In our divisions, which live in the workplace as well as in our communities and even surface at family Thanksgiving dinners, we need to listen to and show respect to those who hold different beliefs. We need to find common ground and work toward shared goals, regardless of political differences.
In this election season, I found a podcast that presented views from both Republican and Democratic operatives, and invited Trump and Harris supporters to talk with each other, https://www.2way.tv/event/the-morning-meeting-with-mark-halperin-sean-spicer-and-tim-hogan, and noticed over the months I watched how the conversations grew more reasonable and less divisive.
Finally, if you’re handing this article to your manager, challenge him to go beyond “this will blow over.” Managers can do much to create psychological safety in workplaces in which employees hold opposing political views. They can bring employees together in team meetings and a staff meeting and remind them that, regardless of differences, employees can focus on their mutual commitment to their mission and clients. They can hold staff meetings at which they acknowledge the excellence employees bring to the table, even when disconnected by political views, and reinforce the core value of treating others with respect.
© 2024 Lynne Curry, PhD, SPHR, SHRM-SCP
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As a fellow underground Trump voter, I feel for this guy. Many of us weren’t all-in for Trump, we just felt of the two choices we had, he was most likely to govern according to our values of limited government, a strong national defense, no new wars, a secure border, freedom of religion, etc. But we didn’t run around with MAGA hats on. While I have no problem with people who vote D and have worked to understand their points of view, I don’t feel they have done the same for conservatives. An admission of being a Trump voter can result in ostracization, being verbally or physically attacked, or having damaged property. I would be relieved if we could get back to a nation that engages in civil discourse or at least just agree to disagree and focus on the things we have in common, which are many.
Dee, terrific comments. And I’ve heard from many that R voters didn’t have problems with D voters, but it’s different the other way around. And completely agreed on your last line.
I agree, Dee, we need to engage in civil discourse and focus on what we have in common, rather than going all out on vilification of those whose views differ from ours. I call myself an independent because I’m tired of being messed with by pollsters and fund raisers–on both sides.
This is interesting for the things said as well as the things unsaid. First off, why are employees discussing politics at work? OK, so they will no matter what the official line is on having and not having such discussions. Is this a business that deals face-to-face with customers? Because the wearing black and other obvious signs of political sympathies might not be shared by all customers. The person who was undercover until they were outed by not joining in their coworkers’ misery reveals what post-election analyses have been telling us about a lot of T voters. They didn’t like him, but didn’t like the other candidate even more; or, they thought they might somehow be better off with T, even though otherwise they weren’t fans.j I like the idea of tuning into the balanced podcast where people have even-keeled discussion about their views and listen to each other and see their views moderate with time. If they’re going to spend time on politics at work, spending time on this podcast might be time well spent.
Agreed!
In the mid 60s, I had to sit out a semester due to partying more than cracking the books. I got a job in a fair-sized factory that made parts for missiles. We had breaks at 10, 2 and had lunch at 12.
Although the majority of employees were women, there were men and women of all ethnic and religious denominations. There was only one large room for breaks and lunch. Conversations, subjects, and jokes shared were wide open, and often self-deprecating. I worked there until I was drafted and although it was a politically divisive period (Vietnam), there was no violence or loud arguments from either position. People (18 to 70) and their opinions were respected.
Fast forward to the implementation of HR and hot politics. I talked to some long-time employees (retired) who were in contact with current employees. They mentioned the “good old days” and how much they looked forward to break and lunch conversations. According to them, employees now eat in virtual silence or with neutral conversations due to concern that they may upset or offend someone necessitating a visit with HR and a mark on their record. Evidently, this has affected the morale of the workers. I don’t know the facts; however, I do remember enjoying the job and the breakroom comradery.
I’m pretty sure a lot of things are going to go wrong pretty quickly. Tariffs and closed borders, for instance, are inflationary and will probably hasten the popping of the housing bubble. Fair is fair, the bubble was going to pop anyway and is everybody’s fault. What I’m not looking forward to, from past experience, are the Republicans shrilly blaming the Democrats for it. Everything that goes wrong, no matter how ridiculous, will be due our wicked ways. It’s something that I find hard to ignore, especially these days when those threats are backed by threats of violence.
Let’s hope members of both parties stop finger-pointing and that we can heal our polarization.