THE INTERSECTION OF POLITICS & THE WORKPLACE, PART 2

As Part 1 on this subject pointed out:

During a Presidential election year, political differences are ramped up more than usual.
Given the current social and highly contentious political climate present in America, those differences have an even greater potential to spill over into the workplace.
- The potential for heated disagreements between co-works – and for inflammatory, impulsive, ill-advised comments – is obvious.

In Part 2 on this subject, we’ll provide information about two common misconceptions:

MISCONCEPTION #1: EMPLOYEES MUST BE ALLOWED TO TALK “POLITICS” AT WORK.

WRONG.
Some employers (and many employees) commonly but mistakenly believe that the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution guarantees “freedom of speech” at work.
The First Amendment applies only to government action and does not limit the rights of private employers to regulate employees’ communications nor does it provide any Constitutional right for workers to express thoughts or opinions at work.
As a result, there is no general right of “free speech” in a private employer workplace.
- The National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) does restrict an employer’s right to limit workers’ communications about wages, hours and the terms or conditions of employment during non-work time in non-work areas.
- However, employers may restrict workplace communications that are purely “political” in nature as long as any such rules are uniformly enforced.
- For example, an employer legally could forbid communications generally touting a political party or candidate; displaying or distributing a poster or campaign button (“Vote for LoDico”); and wearing a T-shirt that seeks support a particular political party or candidate.
In other words, although employees may be entitled to express their views freely on their own time off company premises, they typically have no such rights at work.
- If this sounds familiar to you, that’s because this same principle applies with respect to unionization activity.

MISCONCEPTION #2: EMPLOYEES MUST BE ALLOWED TO DISPLAY AND DISTRIBUTE POLITICAL MATERIALS IN THE WORKPLACE.

WRONG.
Employers have the right to ban in their workplaces any non-work-related activities, including political activities.
- There is not always a “bright line” distinction under the NLRA between “protected” and “unprotected” activities (such as distributions, solicitations). Therefore, consulting with legal counsel is advisable and thus has a negative

In Part 3 (the last in this series) on this subject, we identify some specific actions employers should take.

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Posted in HR Legal & Compliance