America may be more polarized than ever and HR professionals say this attitude continues to bleed into the workplace.
More than a decade ago, Pew Research Center found that Republicans and Democrats were more ideologically divided than the 20 years prior. In 2023, the majority of Pew respondents said they were always or often “exhausted” thinking about politics, and the malaise continued early into the 2024 presidential election, when more than a quarter of those surveyed said they had a negative opinion of both candidates.
HRCI research from earlier this year indicated that all of this is taking a toll on HR professionals:
- 15% said differing political views caused an employee to leave their job.
- 28% told HRCI that political polarization moderately affects their ability to hire.
- 59% said tensions over political issues affect relationships with clients or customers.
More than three-fourths of political experts surveyed said increasing partisanship is a growing bipartisan engagement barrier, and most said they expected this issue to continue.
What does this mean for HR? And what can employers do to minimize political conflict in the workplace?
“Political polarization is a source of tension and conflict in the workplace. We know from this white paper that it is, in fact, having this tangible impact on the actual work that HR people are trying to do,” Michael Sosnowski, Director of Research and Market Insights at HRCI, said.
What this means for HR
Protesters stand by U.S. Marines guarding a federal building on June 14, 2025, in Los Angeles, Calif. Protesters held an anti-Trump “No Kings Day” demonstration downtown which has been the focus of protests against Trump’s immigration raids.
Mario Tama via Getty Images
Previous HRCI data from October 2024 showed that HR may not feel fully confident addressing these issues. Only 11% said they feel “completely prepared” to handle politically charged discussions. One-third said they feel “mostly prepared,” and 36% said they feel just “somewhat prepared.”
“I think as leaders are trying to kind of address this, it really is helpful to remember that conflict over politics really is, in many ways, akin to other forms of conflict that HR folks and organizational leadership need to manage,” Sosnowski said.
He recommended that HR professionals looking for guidance in this area take cues from their peers. In HRCI’s report, 36% of people in a LinkedIn poll said their company discourages any political discussion. Meanwhile, 15% said their company encourages civil discussion, and 49% do “nothing specific.”
“Few organizations have a formal policy in place around political expression or activity, and our take is that’s probably not a bad thing,” Sosnowski said. “Hard and fast rules rarely succeed when trying to settle conflicts.”
Best practices to minimize political conflict
Sosnowski recommended that HR and other business leaders talk about what should happen, versus what shouldn’t happen.
“Present and explain guidelines and expectations to folks around this idea of allowing employees to express themselves authentically and respectfully,” he said.
HRCI recommended in the report that employers not only take a position on political discussions occurring at work, but thoroughly explain that position. “So, setting those guidelines and then communicating them at every turn that you have a chance,” Sosnowski added.
This includes everything from onboarding, to company events and townhalls, he added. “You should be consistently messaging.”
HRCI also recommended that employers be wary of overt partisanship.
While “many issues will be perceived as partisan, actual partisan behavior such as endorsing a candidate or a political party can be a much louder statement,” it said. Even if endorsing one particular candidate may seem “advantageous,” doing so should be “carefully considered,” HRCI advised.
If an employer takes positions on polarizing issues, it will have a more difficult time managing “value disparities in the workforce,” HRCI CEO Amy Dufrane said in a statement. In doing so, employers will be “injecting these issues directly into the office,” Dufrane said.
HRCI further recommended keeping an open dialogue. “No matter what position your company takes, there will always be employees who disagree,” researchers said the report; “ensure there are forums where these employees can be heard, have questions answered, and feel engaged despite a different viewpoint.”
Sosnowski said organizations should consider providing employees, especially ones who are experiencing problems with political disagreements, a way to be heard beyond filing a formal complaint. “This could be something like third-party mediation or even some sort of internal ombudsman,” he said.
“We think this is a great opportunity for HR to kind of take the lead in terms of providing formal training, around conflict styles and how to deal with and resolve conflicts,” he added. But, he continued, the responsibility can’t just rest on HR.
Managers and C-suite leaders should also adhere to the workplace approach to political discussion. “Employees are going to model the behaviors that are demonstrated by senior leadership,” Sosnowski said.