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In a year devastated by Covid, racial strife and polarization, communicators hope that the Biden-Harris administration will help advance the workplace, supporting people-centered efforts such as driving DE&I, employee engagement, and protection of workers.
However, the reality is that the true impact of Joe Biden being in the White House on everyday life and work is, at this point, only conjecture, particularly as Donald Trump continues to contest the election results and Biden is still he is two months away from taking office.
“Trump must give in so that we can turn the page and be in a position to do some work for all Americans,” said BerlinRosen Senior Vice President Janna Pea, who focuses on issues such as social impact and racial justice. “With everything that is happening in the country and around the world, we need to move forward in order to do meaningful work.”
But the polarization didn’t end with election season, particularly around diversity and inclusion and the resurgence of the Black Lives Matter movement.
“Half the United States still voted for the losing side, and there are very, very passionate people who keep showing up in the workplace,” said Jonathan Jordan, senior vice president in Edelman’s Employee Experience Practice, who leads the firm’s DE&I work in the US “A lot of clients are (embracing) the message, ‘Put your whole being to work.’ That includes the politics of the people. “
Cydney Roach, global president of Edelman’s employee experience practice, said demand for services increased ahead of the election as companies sought help designing messages and action plans around “issues that mattered to their specific employee group “. DE&I, immigration, health and safety and ESG are hot topics that business leaders are increasingly expected to address, while in some cases they are also nervous about doing so given their partisan nature.
Two clients, a West Coast-based global fintech company and an East Coast financial services group, for example, faced challenges of engaging two very different groups of employees: elite liberal professionals and people more conservative than They work in back-end services, like call centers. .
In a September Edelman poll, 35% of 2,000 American respondents said they were concerned that the advancement of black and brown people would hamper their careers. “There is fear around Covid, fear of racial injustice … there is still a lot of fear of race in this country … and that is not going to go away overnight because of the administration,” Roach said.
“Regardless of the outcome of the elections, the polarization will persist. That has not been resolved, ”said Margenett Moore-Roberts, director of diversity and inclusion for IPG Dxtra (the marketing and public relations group of the holding company).
Biden’s selection of Kamala Harris, a woman of color, as a running mate is important symbolically and in reality: Management’s commitment to D&I may extend into business.
However, Moore-Roberts said, “It doesn’t change that we still have to teach people to accept change … and celebrate differences.”
However, there are small glimpses of possibility, given the expectation that Biden will roll back Trump’s restrictions on diversity training. A large company has already changed the reservation of a January speaker whose appearance was ruled out to avoid conflict with Trump’s September executive order.
Communicators say they hope Biden and Harris in office will benefit people in the workplace in other ways as well.
Expect the new administration, for example, to maintain the employee protections that Trump sought to dismantle, as well as their right to organize. ROKK Solutions senior advisor Kristen Hawn said the new administration will also affect people as the Biden White House is likely to promote, even hope, for companies to invest in employees and communities.
“It will be important for businesses to communicate what they are doing in this regard and make sure this administration knows that they are taking steps in the right direction to improve the lives of communities,” Hawn said.
“Large employers are as much a part of the success of our economy (as are small businesses), and they often provide stable long-term jobs for the millions of Americans who grow up in these businesses. Therefore, its policy is very important for the livelihood and well-being of its employees, ”he said.
Pea anticipates an increase in employee engagement. “2020 has been a year like no other,” he said. “People are balancing the responsibilities of caring for children, caring for parents, working in spaces that aren’t meant to be long-term offices, and trying to manage the fatigue that comes with all the uncertainty and stress. It is forcing conversations about how employers can do more to support their employees and help address burnout, like improving mental health coverage and offering practices like yoga and meditation. “
And Hilary Rosen, SKDKnickerbocker vice president and Democratic strategist, said she hopes the new administration will be aggressive in pressuring companies to address social issues like fairness and clean supply chains.
However, Rosen said he believes that, in the big picture, not much will change for companies as they are already “way ahead of the government” in addressing issues like bias. “We have seen a greater commitment to social problems … and that is largely due to the demands of their own employees and customers (against the government). They just need an intelligent guide, and that is the opportunity for agencies, “he said.
“PR professionals have probably spent the last three and a half years worrying that Donald Trump would tweet about their company. We’re not going to see that with Joe Biden. His is a class act with a mature and experienced team that wants Washington to work, ”said Rosen.
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