As we ease into 2026, there is no shortage of “cultural flashpoints”—political, social and cultural divisions that spill over into the workplace.
But here’s a proposed New Year’s resolution for employers: Don’t let flashpoints consume the 2026 workplace; use policies and training to instill respect and civility.
It can seem like a major challenge.
The Society for Human Resources Management (SHRM) just released its Civility Index, and the results are sobering. SHRM reports that “U.S. workers are experiencing more daily acts of incivility in their everyday lives since the beginning of 2024.” Seventy-five percent of U.S. workers experienced or witnessed workplace incivility in the past month. SHRM reported that the top five contributors to workplace incivility are political differences, racial or ethnic differences, different opinions on social issues, age or generational differences and concerns about current immigration policy.
And it’s no wonder, as the political discourse seems to grow ever coarser and more intolerant.
The president of the United States recently categorized immigrants of a particular national origin as “garbage.” Meanwhile, an appointee of the New York City Mayor-Elect resigned after a single day, once her antisemitic social media posts emerged with statements such as “money hungry Jews.”
The media reported that the U.S. Coast Guard planned a workplace harassment policy that characterized swastikas and nooses—among the most overt, unambiguous symbols of hate—as merely “potentially divisive.” After media scrutiny, the Coast Guard deleted the language, indicating that such symbols are strictly prohibited.
When such language and symbols are normalized in headlines and politics, it has a downstream effect. People feel greater license to use bluntly discriminatory language and to be uncivil to anyone with whom they disagree. And increasingly, some employees will even do so when they are at work or on the job.
For employers, a new year can be a time to reset. It can be a time to recommit to a civil workplace where every employee feels respected, and the focus is on working together to achieve the organization’s mission or business goals.
Every employer should have an anti-discrimination and anti-harassment policy. This foundational document is a key to managing many flashpoints. Anti-discrimination policies prohibit name-calling based on race, national origin, gender, religion or other protected classifications. They also prohibit negative stereotyping or “jokes” about protected groups. Symbols of hate are barred by non-discrimination policies, including swastikas and nooses, which reflect a long and deadly history of violence.
The employer’s handbook should make clear that a violation of the anti-discrimination and anti-harassment policy is grounds for discipline, up to and including termination. And the employer should investigate any complaints of violations and take prompt corrective action to enforce the policy when violations are found. The handbook should make clear that expectations for civil discourse extend to off-duty conduct, noting all appropriate caveats for relevant state and federal laws.
Beyond ensuring a basic foundation whereby discrimination and harassment are not tolerated, the employer can also insist on a civil workplace culture. Personal insults have no place in a well-functioning work environment. Bullying is not acceptable in the modern workplace. Temper tantrums need not be tolerated. Leadership can set a professional tone from the top.
Carefully crafted policies can help manage expectations as to what is acceptable while also ensuring that required protections for certain speech about workplace conditions are honored. Consistent enforcement of the rules can reinforce what is—and is not—acceptable language and behavior in the workplace. Where there has been a major breakdown in the work climate, a cultural assessment can be effective in determining the source of the issues and possible remedies.
Finally, training is a powerful tool to help ensure a civil and tolerant workplace. High-quality training can cover real-life scenarios as to what crosses the line into a violation of the anti-discrimination and anti-harassment policy. Effective training can carefully and sensitively touch on what might otherwise be divisive topics to provide employees with the language and tools to stay within the guardrails. It can also cover topics for managers, such as how to deliver constructive and respectful performance feedback and how to address communication and conflict among work teams.
We encourage employers to use what we call the “Cultural Flashpoints Framework” to develop a customized approach to flashpoints—including policies and training—that ensures legal compliance but also honors the organization’s policies, business environment and mission. While the world may be persistently polarized, the new year can be an opportune time to set (or reset) expectations. By doing so, the employer can ensure that the workplace stays high-performing, team-oriented and cohesive—perhaps even providing a respite from the incivility and divisions of the outside world.
