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I know I can't control them, but if your manager started saying women are weak or stupid and shouldn't get higher-paying jobs or be in positions of leadership, would you just sip your coffee and not bring it up to anybody? This is the best way to allow problems to fester and grow, and right now his actions have already started causing problems.
Myself and others have complained about him and others to him and he's self-corrected or helped correct the problems between co-workers, this is nothing new. I can bring it up to him but in this case who you support for president right now is a very personal thing and there's a lot of anger against various candidates and their supporters, so do you think I should continue to let a manager make divisive comments and let teammates trash each other over completely unrelated things and possibly cause arguments and distrust?
I'm not worried about coworkers not sharing my beliefs, but hardly anybody brings it up just because it's so divisive. Now my manager has basically said in a standup "this political candidate is an idiot" and watched as a coworker says "his followers are especially idiots and definitely a-holes". How would you like being the minority there, the person who isn't following the groupthink, and have to worry about how people will treat you because you don't agree with them as in "silence isn't a yes"? Because the more it's brought up and talked about and the more opinionated people get, the more the groupthink will start marginalizing and suppressing people and causing discontent, unless I'm completely wrong and remaining silent against hate at the workplace is a good thing.
On the bold, did your manager say that? Like UNC said, I would doubt it since most managers are aware that speaking in regards to racial and gender issues is ripe language for lawsuits.
But FWIW, I did say that I have been witness to racially charged conversations. Many stereotypes were brought up. I am black BTW. I heard my white co-workers who when we were going to interview someone with a "black" sounding name, state, in front of me that the person's name was "too black" and that so and so wouldn't like that so they were just going through the motions and were not going to hire that person based on their name being "too black." I have seen people not get hired due to having dreadlocks (neat dreadlocks BTW). I have been in conversations where I had to argue against people that black people can do server maintenance/IT work and conversations of which I explicitly had to state that they were making stereotypical racist remarks and should be quiet before they say something else.
One of my relatives was accused of throwing chicken bones on the floor in the workplace (and even disciplined for it) because they were the only black worker at that location and "of course" they were the one who did it because you know, only black people eat friend chicken. That relative was actually laid off over a chicken bone he didn't throw on the floor and had to file a complaint with the Civil Rights Commission in our area in order to get the job back, which he did. They reviewed the cameras and it showed a white guy throwing chicken bones on the floor, not my relative and they apologized to him.
I have been witness to SO MANY racially charged conversations at work that some political mumbo jumbo just doesn't bother me much. Racist stuff also doesn't bother me as much as it used to because I'm used to it occurring. So I think in that way OP, I and others just may see your situation as not that big of a deal. It looks like you are thinking of what "could" happen instead of acknowledging that nothing has happened and probably won't happen. This is an election year and everyone talks about politics during presidential election years.
Some of the responses to this thread are demoralizing; some people have no empathy. I'd love to see them in this position.
It's not a lack of empathy. It sucks to have a crappy manager. Been there, done that and have the gray hairs to prove it. It's just that sometimes fighting something can have worse consequences than just ignoring it.
I save my fighting for things that really matter. Like when everyone thinks Plan A is just perfect and I think Plan B is the right path. Then I will fight for Plan B. But, that has to do with doing my job to the best of my ability. I just don't see the margin in fighting to have your political views validated or at least not belittled. Especially when it's your ahole manager leading the villagers with the pitch forks.
Business is hard. Careers are long. Save your strength. You'll need it.
It's not a lack of empathy. It sucks to have a crappy manager. Been there, done that and have the gray hairs to prove it. It's just that sometimes fighting something can have worse consequences than just ignoring it.
I save my fighting for things that really matter. Like when everyone thinks Plan A is just perfect and I think Plan B is the right path. Then I will fight for Plan B. But, that has to do with doing my job to the best of my ability. I just don't see the margin in fighting to have your political views validated or at least not belittled. Especially when it's your ahole manager leading the villagers with the pitch forks.
Business is hard. Careers are long. Save your strength. You'll need it.
So true! The job itself is not always the bearer of negative stress; one can have tasks that are easy and even may be enjoyable at times, but if the boss is the boss-from-he$$ it ruins everything.
Our manager went on a business trip Friday, and when asked about it at the team daily standup, the first thing he says is "I saw a bunch of [x political candidate's] protesters", at which point someone on the team started trashing and insulting them with their own biases. A few people laughed but I quickly changed the subject to what business-relevant thing the manager actually did on the trip, which seemed to be a bit difficult to get out of him.
I then got some uncomfortable stares while giving my part of the standup, and I've noticed some coworkers be a little offish when I don't respond to them trashing certain candidate's supporters (calling them idiots or a-holes basically, etc) or try to deflect it, and it's been pretty on the down-low until recently, and I only know a few people's political biases, but I can see easily how the disagreements and bashing of certain groups of people can be very divisive even among co-workers that have gotten along great.
How do I bring this up? My manager's generally been good at working out problems and not introducing discontent between co-workers at meetings, but I had no idea he was on the side of the political spectrum he is and he's been trashing the other side more and more at meetings. I want to ask him which political candidate the groupthink wants me to support, which party or side, and which legislation and elected politicians, because I'm feeling [EDIT: apparently people are getting distracted by this word, so I apologize for having feelings, I shouldn't feel anything at work] very demoralized and demotivated to work on a team that expects me to have the same political opinions they do under the threat of being distrusted or mistreated.
Your manager's remarks were in poor taste. Politics should be kept out of the workplace. One exception: it's perfectly acceptable to trash Trump and all who support him in all settings. In fact, given his boorish behavior, it's really the polite thing to do.
Just read through the thread. OP, you sound a bit sensitive. I'm not saying that to criticize you.. you are who you are, but don't assume just because someone says something about a group of people they mean personally you if you happen to be in that group. I'm pretty far left and most of my career I have worked with people who are pretty far right. I've gotten along just fine. I state my political views frankly and up front early on so people know where I'm coming from, and then I don't disparage other people's views. We all come from different places and that shapes how we perceive the world.
In conversations, I try to focus on common ground and to explain how I arrived at the conclusions I did. I don't try to convert anyone to seeing things my way. For the most part, following these simple rules works well.
Better to have them tip their hand early vs everyone trying to be touchy feely and have it come out in a very embarrassing situation. As stated though, thick skin is a good thing.
You will be labeled and they will remember it. Just keep quiet and do your job. They don't have to like you but you can really damage your career by joining in those discussions at work, especially then complaining about it.
Last, an open office type environment is not a job for delicate flowers. In sales people get chewed up and spit out on a regular basis. Upper level Mgmt meetings can also be brutal.
Last edited by 1AngryTaxPayer; 04-20-2016 at 03:27 PM..
It's certainly inappropriate and unprofessional, and definitely not something you should feel a need to participate in, but beyond that, there's not really any recourse you have if you want to keep your job and not be the office pariah.
I think the boss should have the right to fire anyone who allows something like a political discussion to put them off or offend them right on the spot. What kind of an employee can someone be who cannot ignore something they do not want to hear and keep on task. I wouldn't want mental midgets like that around.
Our manager went on a business trip Friday, and when asked about it at the team daily standup, the first thing he says is "I saw a bunch of [x political candidate's] protesters", at which point someone on the team started trashing and insulting them with their own biases. A few people laughed but I quickly changed the subject to what business-relevant thing the manager actually did on the trip, which seemed to be a bit difficult to get out of him.
I then got some uncomfortable stares while giving my part of the standup, and I've noticed some coworkers be a little offish when I don't respond to them trashing certain candidate's supporters (calling them idiots or a-holes basically, etc) or try to deflect it, and it's been pretty on the down-low until recently, and I only know a few people's political biases, but I can see easily how the disagreements and bashing of certain groups of people can be very divisive even among co-workers that have gotten along great.
How do I bring this up? My manager's generally been good at working out problems and not introducing discontent between co-workers at meetings, but I had no idea he was on the side of the political spectrum he is and he's been trashing the other side more and more at meetings. I want to ask him which political candidate the groupthink wants me to support, which party or side, and which legislation and elected politicians, because I'm feeling [EDIT: apparently people are getting distracted by this word, so I apologize for having feelings, I shouldn't feel anything at work] very demoralized and demotivated to work on a team that expects me to have the same political opinions they do under the threat of being distrusted or mistreated.
Despite what some people are saying, the work place is not the place for a manager to discuss his political leanings, and especially to trash on those who don't have the same opinion.
I wouldn't bother with asking what political group think he wants you to support, that's just going to make you come off bad. Continue to change the subject back to business, and maybe a trip to HR is in order.
I had to sit next to people one election season who were all of the opposite party that I was, and boy did they talk about it, loudly, every day. They were only co-workers, however, the managers were never stupid enough to get involved....and it IS stupid of the manager to do what he's doing. It's not about "growing thicker skin", (what a dumb response), it's unacceptable. You're not involved in politics, the manager can save it for 5 o'clock happy hour with his tongue wagging minions who will kiss his backside. Anyway, to complete my story, I didn't let them draw me in to their political whining, I just sat back and enjoyed when my party won....if only because it pissed them off, badly.
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