Political tension

Moria

Our organization has been a fairly cohesive group, but with the impending war I am beginning to "sense" that we are going to suffer a crack in the cohesion. We have several people that are policially active and are beginning to use the internal email as a "soapbox". We have several people that may not share the same opinions and we have some mothers of military personnel that are already in the gulf who are already emotional and sensitive to these issues.

I have included below excerpts from our policy, but I wonder should I bring this up now individually, or to the whole staff. Again no one has complained, yet!

"Crow Canyon strives to maintain a workplace free of harassment and sensitive to the diversity of its employees. Therefore, Crow Canyon prohibits the use of computers and the E-mail system in ways that are disruptive, offensive to others, or harmful to morale.

The use of Crow Canyon's computer and electronic communications system for private use is prohibited when attempting to solicit others for commercial ventures, religious or political causes, or other non-business matters. However, the systems may be used for personal reasons with approval of the supervisor during non-business hours."

Help me Don D, with your humanitarian wisdon, I need Baloonman's $0.02, Christy and Margarets professionlism and Paul's prayers. And the multitude of other experts out there what are you doing if this is becoming an issue in your workplace.

MsLady

I would address the company as a whole.

HRsage

I think a memo highlighting the portion in your handbook would be appropriate before it gets out of hand. If you can already feel the tension, most likely others in your company can as well. This way it won't seem like you're singling anybody out on either side. That's my half a cent. I'm not as wise as Balloonman or Don or the others yet!

Margaret Morford

I agree with all the above. To make it more compelling, I might draft a memo as suggested above quoting the relevant policies and then add something like, "Even more important than the policies that are in place to prevent harassment, are the people in our organization that make these policies "real." They demonstrate respect for one another by not forcing their point of view on others who might disagree."

Hope that helps!

Margaret Morford
theHRedge
615-371-8200
[email]mmorford@mleesmith.com[/email]
[url]http://www.thehredge.net[/url]

Dasher

"Even more important than the policies that are in place to prevent harassment, are the people in our organization that make these policies "real." They demonstrate respect for one another by not forcing their point of view on others who might disagree."


Hey, Margaret - I love that! May I borrow it as well. Beautiful.

And yes, it is better to address the issue now before it causes unnecessary harm.

Balloonman

I think Margaret hit it on the head. Plain and simple they are violating policy in addition to other problems they might cause. It is probably a good time as a whole to remind the company of this policy. You might look and see how long it has been, as some policies like this are best if people are reminded of them on at least an annual basis.
Of course if the non-war tree huggers continue, you should start with progressive discipline. x:-)
My $0.02 worth.
DJ The Balloonman

Margaret Morford

Absolutely you may borrow it! Hope it helps.

Margaret Morford
theHRedge
615-371-8200
[email]mmorford@mleesmith.com[/email]
[url]http://www.thehredge.net[/url]

HS

>Help me Don D, with your humanitarian wisdon, I need Baloonman's
>$0.02, Christy and Margarets professionlism and Paul's prayers. And
>the multitude of other experts out there what are you doing if this is
>becoming an issue in your workplace.


I agree with all the posters so far. Address it now as a whole company before it gets out of hand. It's always a good idea to reiterate all policies and procedures once a year and have the employees sign a sheet stating that they have been given a copy of and understand the company's policies.

On a side note, only those listed above can help? Aren't there other wise, professional and prayerful people out here. I can definitely think of some that you've missed...gillian, ritaanz, parabeagle to name a few off the top of my head and don't forget James S!

Moria

"Help me Don D, with your humanitarian wisdom, I need Baloonman's $0.02, Christy and Margarets professionlism and Paul's prayers. Help me Don D, with your humanitarian wisdon, I need Baloonman's $0.02, Christy and Margarets professionlism and Paul's prayers. And the multitude of other experts out there what are you doing if this is becoming an issue in your workplace."

Whoa, didn't mean to offend, I just included all the rest of US experts in the last sentence. I have said this before, and have heard it said often, that we all learn from this site.

Thanks for all the insight.

Gillian

I don't know that I would even reference the policy. In this case "the policy says such and such" seems to make the issue just a policy issue, where it really is an issue that hits the guts of everyone, no matter what side they are on. The mothers of the military personnel must really be torn when they read the E-Mails. I think that your CEO should call a meeting and just talk about the cohesive group that you have and ask people to desist because it is such a divisive issue and if everyone is not careful, the family will be hurt.

Paul in Cannon Beach

[font size="1" color="#FF0000"]LAST EDITED ON 03-04-03 AT 03:39PM (CST)[/font][p]This was a very interesting and thought provoking question. While I agree with everyone who has posted so far regarding re-asserting your policies, I am left feeling a little unsatisfied.

My co-workers are more like family to me than anything else. I share their joyful weddings and births, I grieve their losses and dissapointments. I hear their opinions in the lunch room.

Expression is a basic human impulse. There are some very positive ways of encouraging expression at work (allowing some control over workspace) and some very negative ones (see the "fingerpainting" post).

I think inter-office e-mail should not be used for political ramblings, sexual jokes, religious discussions, etc... However, I wonder if some very tightly knit organizations might actually benefit from an organized, controlled, very well thought out forum of some type so that people could express their thoughts and feelings about the impending war and the anxiety we are all feeling.

I could envision possibly a couple of brown bag lectures with opposing viewpoints presented. Maybe a moment of silence for the troops on both sides. Maybe an moderated open mike forum where employees could respectfully present their views. There are well thought out, rational arguments for both sides.

I think the organization would want to avoid coming down on one side or the other so that no one feels uncomfortable or outside the "establishment" position.

I wouldn't recommend this for every organization. For example, the post that mentioned the two managers who were fighting over a pen don't need any more stimulation. But in a mature, close-knit environment where respect is valued I could see it working and being something positive.

Paul

Whatever

I agree with almost everything you said. However, sometimes an employer trying not to come down on any side is actually making a statement. For example, you envision a moment of silence for the troops on both sides. I have people working here who would consider that unpatriotic (at the minimum). Some issues are just hot buttons. Currently, the hot button issue is war with Iraq. This has been the discussion frequently in the cafeteria or the coffee room. And that is where these discussions belong.