Guardrails for political activities in the workplace

This article was written by Susan Divers, an ethics and compliance industry veteran and consultant with decades of experience in ethics. From 2015 to 2024, she was the Director of Thought Leadership at LRN, where she helped implement innovative and effective compliance programs. Susan was formerly the Chief Ethics and Compliance Officer of AECOM, and worked at Lockheed Martin and SAIC previously.

Hurricane season has started — literally and figuratively — as the presidential election looms and Debbie, the storm that drenched Florida, hit in early August. Both types of hurricanes can release lightning and turbulence into the atmosphere, causing confusion and damage. As we’ve seen over the past several months, political polarization can hurt an organization’s reputation and sow discord in the workplace.

Making this area more complicated, there’s a patchwork of detailed federal and state laws governing organizations’ political activity that require care and attention to avoid violations. Therefore, in addition to keeping up with weather reports, now’s a good time to review how your organization handles political activity in the workplace and consider giving guidance to avoid problems.  

Here are some Dos and Don’ts to help with that process.

Do: provide guardrails for political activity and speech in the workplace.

Contrary to common belief, there is no federal constitutionally protected right of political free speech in the workplace. Federal laws such as the National Labor Relations Act protect employees’ right to discuss issues to improve their work conditions and a patchwork of state laws also can apply but in general employers can put in place policies on political speech and activities in the workplace.

Do: encourage employees to participate in the political process outside of work.

Encouraging employees to participate in the political process by voting or other activities outside the office is a widespread best practice and no one should be penalized for their beliefs or activities.   

Do: insist on civility and respect for everyone by setting guidelines on political discussions in the workplace.

Clearly, prohibiting political discussions in the workplace isn’t doable or a good idea. But guidelines and policies based on respect for coworkers and customers that outline when such discussions are inappropriate (in front of customers, for example) or can become oppressive to coworkers help preserve civility.  

Your guidance should communicate to employees that the company doesn’t want to limit healthy dialogue about social issues, but political discussions must be consistent with avoiding disruptions, maintaining a culture of respect for everyone, speaking with one voice, and avoiding conflicts of interest.  Thus, employees should not actively promote their political beliefs at work or on company premises or use company accounts or email to communicate them.

Reminding employees that the workplace is a place where everyone should feel safe and respected is an important part of the guardrail. A recent February 2024 study from ResumeHelp indicated that 51% of employees felt that workplace political discussions hurt the workplace environment. 

Do: provide guidance and a review process for employees who wish to run for office or be appointed to public service.  

Employees should be free to engage in political activities in their personal time and using their personal funds, including running for office or appointment to the public sector. But guardrails can help educate employees on what types of activities trigger election laws and how best to keep personal activity separate from work activity. For example, a candidate who asks colleagues or, worse yet, direct reports to contribute to his or her campaign puts them in an awkward position. Similarly, a candidate should use their personal devices for any campaign-related work, not company systems. Requiring prior review by the Legal or HR Department of any proposed political candidacy is a good way to identify issues and potential conflicts of interest that could arise down the road.

Don’t: allow company property to be used for political activities.

Federal rules on corporate political activity and many state laws prohibit companies from making monetary and “in-kind contributions” to benefit political candidates or entities. An in-kind contribution can include goods or services offered free or at a discount, such as a reception or donation of computers. Similarly, when a person or entity pays for services on the candidate or party’s behalf, the payment is an in-kind contribution. This includes doing volunteer activities at work, including fundraising, or using company resources such as computers or meeting rooms. Providing clear guardrails in this area is important to avoid election law violations.

Don’t: let the company name to be used in any political activity.  

Consistent with standard corporate communications policies, only designated individuals are authorized to speak on behalf of most organizations. This principle applies to political activity too. Remind everyone to make clear if they are talking to the press, using social media or otherwise supporting a candidate or cause to make clear that they are acting in their personal capacity, not on behalf of the company.

The bottom line

Putting guardrails in place, especially as the elections approach or events with the potential to inflame emotions and cause division dominate news cycles, can help employees navigate polarizing and divisive issues. As well as written guidance or policies, consider using group meetings as opportunities to remind employees how to stay compliant and to emphasize practicing mutual respect and maintaining civility. Taking these proactive measures can help any hurricanes pass without doing damage.

About Ethena

Ethena is an all-in-one compliance training platform that helps companies create more inclusive work cultures through world-class content and employee relations tools. Our library of 150+ training courses spans topics like Harassment Prevention, Anti-Money Laundering, Cybersecurity, and Code of Conduct, with a 93% approval rating from over 2 million learners.