What do all of these have in common?
You shouldn’t talk about them at work.
Regardless of your company’s policy on discussing political or religious matters at work, you shouldn’t do it. Similarly, if you like your job, you should never talk about sexual matters at all. And while the sexual element of this post is the most obvious, it is simply worth repeating. Especially if you’re a man. If you have a problem with the double standard there, you should probably get used to being unemployed.
Why shouldn’t you discuss political or religious matters at work is simply a matter of common sense you would think. You don’t want to say or do anything with your employer that would introduce bias (known or unknown) into any sort of promotion or performance appraisal. Right or wrong, that bias can have an effect on your employment (no matter how much us HR people try to squash it). I always believe in keeping those views close to you so that your employer can’t introduce that unnecessary bias. What does my employer know about my political and religious views? Absoutely nothing. That’s the way it will stay too.
If your company does have a policy on speech restrictions, look over it and understand it. I don’t recommend whining about it since it is in your own self-interest.
{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
If you have a problem with the double standard there, you should probably get used to being unemployed.
HAH. This cracked me up. Yes, we know it’s a double standard. Yes, it’s wrong and it sucks. No, there’s nothing I can do about it, so you’re just going to have to get used to it.
I don’t get it. Playing martyr will get you nowhere. People that routinely complain about it should do something about it. As enforced, the law errs on that side so you should always expect your employer to err on that side too.