There is a political divide in the country that is increasingly evident in the workplace. While Labor-Management disputes have been common since the inception of corporations, the modern workplace debates are so much more than disputes over wages and working conditions. They have evolved into demands that companies meet the social-political values of their workers no matter the bottom-line repercussions. Consider the following headlines…
Stories of employee activism are increasingly being regarded as a cost of doing business, especially among the larger enterprises. In 2018, Randstad US released survey results that illuminated just how much politics were affecting the workplace. Here are few of the statistics from their report.
In the USA, we are in the middle of an election season resulting in the public being inundated with political ads of all sorts. Most notably, the focus of the advertising is the abortion rights debate. In light of the Supreme Court overturning Roe vs Wade, which does not make abortion illegal but leaves the decision to individual state governments, politicians have been quick to label their opponents as unreasonable demagogues. In response to that trend, some companies have been outspoken in their support of “abortion services” for women. Chief among those companies is Google, who sent out this letter to its employees.
Hi everyone,
This morning the US Supreme Court issued a ruling in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization that rolls back Roe v. Wade.
This is a profound change for the country that deeply affects so many of us, especially women. Everyone will respond in their own way, whether that’s wanting space and time to process, speaking up, volunteering outside of work, not wanting to discuss it at all, or something else entirely. Please be mindful of what your co-workers may be feeling and, as always, treat each other with respect.
Equity is extraordinarily important to us as a company, and we share concerns about the impact this ruling will have on people’s health, lives, and careers. We will keep working to make information on reproductive healthcare accessible across our products and continue our work to protect user privacy.
To support Googlers and their dependents, our US benefits plan and health insurance covers out-of-state medical procedures that are not available where an employee lives and works. Googlers can also apply for relocation without justification, and those overseeing this process will be aware of the situation. If you need additional support, please connect 1:1 with a People Consultant via [link to internal tool redacted].
We will be arranging support sessions for Googlers in the US in the coming days. These will be posted to Googler News.
Please don’t hesitate to lean on your Google community in the days ahead and continue to take good care of yourselves and each other.
In their haste to support the latest cause cé·lè·bre, companies are ignoring the potential long-term ramifications to their employer brand. Earlier, I referred to a survey conducted by Randstad US. Here are two more data points from that same analysis.
Quite a conundrum, isn’t it? Taking a position on abortion rights would repel some candidates while simultaneously attracting others. But which candidate would have been the most qualified, available and affordable for the role you are trying to fill? How could you possibly know?
But I digress. Taking a stand on any social issue could negatively impact your employer brand if your stance is seen as a performative virtue-signaling exercise. For example, supporting the Black Lives Matter movement was all the rage not too long ago. To appeal to consumers and the rising outcry of employee demands, companies rushed to appear “woke,” to their own detriment. A few examples…
Of course, this brings us back to the issue of the day. Is your company tempted to follow the latest trend (supporting abortion rights) at the risk of long-term employer brand impact? If so, may I suggest a few strategies before final decisions are made?
Maybe the best solution for your company is to remain neutral by not being overtly vocal on a position (and thereby risk reputational damage) and instead, offer benefits that might appeal to opponents and proponents of (insert latest social issue here). Since reproductive rights are a focus of national conversation today, I will share examples of (somewhat) neutral stances.
Of course, not every company has the budget for such perks, in those cases a Health Savings Account (HSA) may be the way to go. Companies contribute a certain amount, leaving the employees to spend on medical expenses, as they see fit. This puts the choice of medical procedures at the discretion of the employee and not the employer. Plus, there are tax advantages.
Today abortion rights are the focus, yesterday it was BLM and tomorrow it will be ___________. When the next issue makes headlines and your company is tempted to trumpet its support, be careful to pause a moment and ask the following...
The bottom line for all of this is that your company should know its values well enough to articulate them, believe in them enough to follow them and stand by them enough to inspire your workers. A company cannot do that if they are easily swayed by the latest outrage. Standing up for what you believe inis indeed,the right thing to do. So, do it wisely.
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