Office politics
Scotland, general elections, the European referendum – how can you stop employees having political barneys?It won’t have escaped your notice, but the UK is facing a series of potentially momentous political events.
The Scottish independence referendum will soon be upon us, followed by a General Election (possibly, or possibly not, including Scotland) and, in the case of a Tory victory in the General Election, an in/out referendum on continued EU membership.
These issues will continue to arouse strong passions from advocates on every side, and it’s inevitable that these passions will find expression in workplaces up and down the land. But just what is the best way to manage political views within the workplace?
The starting point is that, in general, an employee’s political views, no matter how distasteful or muddle-headed, are none of the employer’s business.
Yes, there may be some jobs where political neutrality, inside and outside work, is a requirement. But such exceptions are rare.
Following a successful challenge last year from a BNP council candidate who lost his job, the Government was forced to amend unfair dismissal legislation to provide that the two year qualifying criterion will be disapplied where the dismissal is connected to an individual’s political views.
The fact that individuals can challenge any dismissal at a tribunal does not mean, of course, that such a dismissal will be unfair. But the employer will have to point to some connection to work to justify dismissal, in terms of reputational damage or issues with, for example, other employees or funders. Not liking an employee’s views won’t be enough.
Talk can be controlled
An employer can control to a greater degree what an employee does and says at work. Unlike religious beliefs, where an employee has a right to manifest them at work, an employee has no right to proclaim his or her political views there.
While, for example, a Christian employee has a right to display a small cross visibly at work, he or she has no right to display a Labour, Tory or UKIP badge.
However, for those employers who don’t particularly fancy standing at the door of the factory or office to police any political paraphernalia, or confiscate mugs bearing saltires or union jacks from the cafeteria, what should be done?
Having a draconian rule that no-one at work is permitted to make any comment about politics and current affairs is unlikely to be either welcome or effective.
At the senior levels of an organisation, it should be made clear that, unless a decision has been taken at Board level to have the business involved in the debate on one side or another, those who represent the business should ensure that they are scrupulously neutral when acting on company business.
If any comments are made on one side or the other, it should be made clear that this is done in a purely personal capacity.
Regarding other staff, it should be clear that any comments they choose to make on personal social media should not be associated with the business in any way.
It should go without saying that those who have access to the business’s own social media should have clear instructions on what can and cannot be said.
Finally, it should be made clear that political discussions should not be pursued in a way that others find offensive, particularly in relation to race, religion, gender, and so on. There’s no harm in administering a further gentle reminder to employees that we live in a liberal democracy and that everyone is entitled to their own views – regardless of how muddled we employers and HR representatives think these are.
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