Post-election discontent dominates the workplace
The outcome of the U.S. presidential election, which will put former President Donald Trump back in the Oval Office come January, sent shockwaves throughout much of the nation and the world this week —and business leaders and people managers have had to cope with a surge of anxiety, depression and rancor on the part of many workers.
With feelings running high — and even an expectation of violence, depending on how the election turned out — some companies allowed their people to skip coming to the office altogether this week. Meanwhile, many other employees are burying themselves in work to cope — making managers concerned about burnout.
To support her employees and stay mindful of potential difficulties around the election, Lakesha Cole, founder and principal publicist at the PR agency she PR, prearranged for this to be an admin week at her firm. “I wanted to make sure my team had the flexibility to process, reflect or step back without the added strain of looming deadlines,” she said. “This week, I’m making it clear: You don’t have to carry the weight alone.”
Stress and anxiety in the wake of the election — which proved to be a crushing loss for the Democratic Party and its presidential candidate, Vice President Kamala Harris — have been palpable for Cole and her team. “We’re a small group of minority women, and this moment isn’t just political — it’s personal, raw and, frankly, exhausting,” she said. “As a leader, I see it as my responsibility to not only acknowledge that but to meet it with real support and action.”
In the approach to Election Day, employers were already gearing up to navigate what likely would be a people-management minefield considering the polarized nature of U.S. politics.
Just hours before the results would be known and speaking at the group’s annual convention, Johnny C. Taylor Jr., CEO of the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), called upon HR professionals to work to ensure a peaceful workplace, calling it “HR’s opportunity to make a difference in America.”
According to SHRM’s research, politics is a primary reason for incivility on the job, with nearly 8 in 10 people facing poor treatment at work because of their political positions. Only 8% of companies have policies in place to handle it.
Meanwhile, the American Psychological Association has cited a loaded political climate, along with the pandemic and inflation, as among the reasons the nation is experiencing a state of collective trauma.
“There’s no perfect thing to say in moments like this — there’s an entire spectrum of emotions happening for your team members depending on their political views and personal experiences,” said JoAnn Martin, chief revenue officer at tech company Black Crow AI. “I think the best thing we can do in moments like this is to show up for each other and our customers with the respect and integrity we always bring.”
This week, Martin shared her cell number with employees and made herself available for one-on-one conversations should they have a particularly difficult moment or a challenging customer call.
“We’re approaching this historic moment with the same respect and sensitivity we’ve shown during other challenging cultural times, guided by our core values of adaptive resilience, advocacy and championing, integrity and heart-centricity,” said Gary Mittman, CEO of the AI-driven video technology company KERV. That included offering flexible work options on Election Day, allowing employees the space to process the results and to talk about them, and affording team members the opportunity to connect with company leadership.
“If there’s anything we’ve learned since the pandemic, it is that work and life are integrated,” said Mack McKelvey, founder and CEO of the marketing firm SalientMG. “We see first-hand how much our team members are impacted by political, social and environmental issues. As leaders, how we choose to address, or not address, the issues matters. How we react or don’t react matters, too.”