Workplace is becoming more political as Gen Z comes of age: Report

The workplace has long been seen as a place where Republicans and Democrats set aside their differences to accomplish shared goals. But that ideal is fading among younger generations, who are often the most outspoken about their beliefs and are most likely to want to work with colleagues and leaders that share them.

Once considered taboo, talking politics at the watercooler is now quite common, especially among Gen Z. Three in five US workers have discussed politics with coworkers over the last year, according to a report published Thursday by employer review platform Glassdoor.

Political conversations have been getting more fraught for years: A 2021 Pew survey found that Americans were more frustrated and stressed than years past when discussing politics with those they disagree with. As the 2024 election cycle approaches and conversations around the Israel-Hamas war grow increasingly polarised, ideological divides are deepening. The challenges facing chief executive officers leading politically diverse workforces will likely grow more acute. 

Against this backdrop, the Glassdoor poll uncovered a wide range of expectations for political interactions with coworkers. While  82 per cent of workers are comfortable working with those with very different political views from their own, that share falls to 72 per cent among Gen Z. 

The Harris Poll surveyed 1,055 US adults employed full or part-time in early October on behalf of Glassdoor.

Nearly half of Gen Z workers would not apply for a job at a company where the CEO supports a political candidate they disagree with. That contrasts with older generations: About 40 per cent of millennials and only about 30 per cent of Gen X and Baby Boomers say that a CEO’s politics would influence their decision.

Younger workers are also most likely to say they feel supported when their company takes a public stand on an issue they care about: That’s true for about 70 per cent of Gen Z and millennials, relative to about 60 per cent of Gen X and 50 per cent of baby boomers.

To be sure, Glassdoor Chief Economist Aaron Terrazas said it’s “impossible to say definitively” whether the poll’s findings are due to genuine generational differences or “more enduring age-specific effects.” For example, the share of people who vote tends to increase with age.

“It’s not unusual for young people to be politically engaged, and also we know that the formative experiences of young adulthood enduringly shape our attitudes about social norms,” he said in an email.

For younger generations, politics have become increasingly existential. From climate change to gun violence to threats to the LGBTQ community to the preservation of democracy itself, the stakes are higher than ever. 

For some, that leaves little room for compromise.