AYESHA RASCOE, HOST:
Disgreements over politics have sent workplace incivility to an all-time high this year, according to one human resources group. NPR's Maria Aspan talked to HR leaders about how they're preparing for Tuesday and beyond, and she joins us now. Hi, Maria.
MARIA ASPAN, BYLINE: Hi, Ayesha.
RASCOE: So we've seen lots of disagreement online and even at polling places. But what has that looked like at work?
ASPAN: So there are a lot of tense water cooler conversations at the physical office but also over Zoom or social media. In fact, let me play you a clip.
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JOHNNY C TAYLOR JR: It's getting hot out here.
ASPAN: That's Johnny C. Taylor Jr. He runs a group of HR managers called SHRM.
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TAYLOR JR: We literally are seeing month-over-month increases in incivility and incivility specifically in response to one's political opinions or one's perceived political affiliation.
ASPAN: And there's a financial cost to all of this tension. Taylor's group estimates that all of this incivility is costing employers some $2 billion a day in lost productivity.
RASCOE: Two billion dollars a day - is that because workers are ignoring their jobs and just sitting around arguing about who should be president?
ASPAN: I mean, there's some of that, but it's not just that everyone's arguing. It's about what happens after you might have a tense confrontation with a co-worker.
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TAYLOR JR: On average, after an individual experiences an act of incivility at work, it takes them 31 minutes to recover. That impacts productivity.
ASPAN: Ayesha, it's worth remembering that we spend about a third of our lives at work, so it's inevitable that we're going to bring some of how we're feeling into our jobs. And with a lot of people on edge right now, it's going to be even harder to stay focused.
RASCOE: So what's the answer then? Can employers just tell everyone to leave the politics at home?
ASPAN: This is what surprised me. I thought that was going to be the advice I got when I started talking to HR leaders. We've seen some big companies like Coinbase and, more recently, Google saying exactly that, telling employees to leave the political debates at home. But that's really hard to enforce, and some companies are recognizing that. I talked to Melissa Anderson. She oversees HR for Albemarle, which makes lithium for car batteries.
MELISSA ANDERSON: The best way for them to handle their emotions is to feel like they have a safe place to talk about it and to be able to engage safely and to feel supported.
ASPAN: So Albemarle has created some employee resource groups and also hosted some internal meetings for employees to get together and talk about current events that are affecting them.
RASCOE: So as we go into this week, what else can employers do, and what can we as workers do?
ASPAN: Well, for us workers, I mean, take a breath and remember to treat everyone, including our co-workers, with respect. For employers, it really varies, and some of it is kind of extreme. Taylor told me that some small businesses are even canceling meetings on Wednesday and Thursday so that employees who voted different ways aren't forced to interact. But as you know, it might be days before we know the election results, months before the inauguration, and we're going to continue to face a lot of other uncertainty at home and at the office. So in general, whatever your company's policy is about talking politics or not talking politics, there should be a policy. If you don't already have one at work, it's still worth starting to think about it.
RASCOE: That's NPR's Maria Aspan. Maria, thanks so much.
ASPAN: Thank you. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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