Prof. Matthew Bodie Quoted in Twin Cities Business About the Perils of Politics at Work

Professor Matthew Bodie, Robins Kaplan Professor of Law, was quoted in Twin Cities Business about how in the social media age, divisions between public and private life are dissolving, and people are bringing ideology to work, with questions about the boundaries of political speech and activities in the workplace. But does a “like” on social media constitute political speech? If so, is that grounds for firing? Are social media posts from years ago grounds for firing? Prof. Bodie said, “I have some sympathy for HR departments.” While private employers have legal latitude with regulating speech in the workplace, Prof. Bodie said employers cannot explicitly tell their workers how to vote. “You can’t tell someone go vote a certain way or I’ll fire you,” nor can companies punish employees for donating to political candidates of their choice.