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Bringing Politics In Workplace Could Affect Employee’s Productivity, Mental Health & Work Quality
Gone are the days when people thought that bringing politics into the workplace is a good thing. A new study shows that differences in political views may have effect on employee's productivity, mental health and work quality.
In the past, scholars thought that people with different world views interacting together is a positive experience. It may be an avenue for them to appreciate other people's political belief.
However, in the past year, there has been a constant battle in the world of politics. Politics became adversarial and combative. The effect of bringing people with different political views has been toxic and negative.
A research conducted by Betterworks consultancy shows that 29 percent of workers claim that they are less productive after the election. The political climate had a significant negative impact on worker's ability to concentrate in their jobs.
The respondents of the study said that political discussions in their workplace has led them feeling stressed. They also reported feelings of cynicism and had difficulty in finishing work. It has also resulted to lower work quality and diminished productivity.
The study also shows that what started as a benign conversation about political views escalates into full-blown arguments. Almost half of the respondents, 49 percent, said that they have witnessed how political discussions can affect people at work. Millennials are most likely to report this kind of conversation.
Before the election in 2016, the American Psychological Association (APA) conducted a survey titled "Politics In The Workplace: 2016 Election Season." The result showed that one in four employees in the United States are affected by political talk during the pre-election season.
These people have also reported difficulty in getting work done and producing a low quality kind of work. The younger generation are reported to be more affected with the stress on political differences in the workplace.
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