One in Three say they Talk Politics at Work

With election day just around the corner, you are bound to hear more discussion about politics.  A study finds the discussion does not stop at work, for some people.

A survey by CareerBuilder finds 36 percent of workers discuss politics at work, and about 46 percent think they'll talk about the presidential race.  Of those people, the survey found one in five people got into a heated argument because of their political opinions.

"I'm certainly aware of how these conversation can get heated. Clearly this year there's a lot at stake and so a lot of people feel passionately and strongly either way," Gayla Sherry, a human resources consultant in Edmond said.

Sherry said workers, as citizens, have the right to talk about politics in the workplace.  She said it's not something that needs to be banned because of it's potential for conflict, but that managers need to monitor the discussion is it gets out of hand.

"I think an organization, management, does have an obligation to intervene, if that discussion whether its about politics or anything else becomes disruptive to the work place," Sherry said. "Not as a view of don't talk about that specific candidate or 'I don't agree with you,' but rather to resolve the conflict that can happen as a result of those discussions."

Sherry said people need to go into political discussion, realizing that they could be picking a fight.  She said workers need to make sure sharing their views does not get in the way of customer service or being productive.One in Three say they Talk Politics at Work

Posted: Sunday, November 4 2012, 09:23 PM CST