Can Your Boss Threaten to Fire You if You Don't Vote for Romney? (why yes, he probably can)

[cali]

at least according to this article from the Atlantic.

Last week, timeshare mogul and garish home-owner David Siegel was caught sending an email -- largely cribbed from a debunked hoax -- darkly suggesting that his employees vote for Mitt Romney because a victory for Barack Obama would endanger the economy and with it all of their jobs. This week, In These Times' Mike Elk uncovered the impressive array of materials sent to employees at the Koch brothers' Georgia Pacific, largely along the same lines. Up with Chris Hayes found another case at ASG Software Solutions, a Florida software company: "We have been able to keep ASG an independent company while still growing our revenues and customers. But I can tell you, if the US re-elects President Obama, our chances of staying independent are slim to none." And on Thursday, Elk struck again, publishing a recording of a conference call where Mitt Romney encouraged members of a conservative businessowners' group to put pressure on employees to vote for him:

I hope you make it very clear to your employees what you believe is in the best interest of your enterprise and therefore their job and their future in the upcoming elections. Nothing illegal about you talking to your employees about what you believe is best for the business, because I think that will figure into their election decision, their voting decision and of course doing that with your family and your kids as well.

Is that true? Can your boss really tell you who to vote for? The answer is probably yes -- depending on where you live, and assuming you're employed in the private sector. In most of the country, there's little restriction on such communication, legal experts say.

Basically, employers have freedom of speech. That means they can say what they want, including strongly suggesting that employees vote for candidates and sending sample ballots to them. Your boss can't walk into the voting booth with you, and she can't pay you to vote for a particular candidate, but often there's little else he or she can't do.

<snip>

http://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2012/10/can-your-boss-threaten-to-fire-you-if-you-dont-vote-for-romney/263709/

[Fawke Em]

1. However, you also can lie your ass of and say you voted for that vile asshole

when you really voted for the president and your boss can't find out a damn thing.

[ProSense]

2. They can fire you for being a woman, black or gay too

Pretending that there is no legal line to be crossed here is dangerously misinformed.

[bkkyosemite]

3. The stupid boss can say what he wants.

What is he going to do attach a spy camera to you when you go vote.

[lonestarnot]

4. Mine can't.

[rucky]

5. If a competing company sent out one of these memos...

our salespeople would have a field day with it.

Show it to all their customers and say that our business has been doing fine under Obama and will continue to be stable no matter who's elected.

[Historic NY]

6. He can threaten you but he can't find out how you voted.

[gollygee]

7. I see two different issues

1. can they threaten to fire you if you don't vote for Romney
2. can they actually fire you if they find out you didn't vote for Romney.

My guess is that #1 might be legal, but #2 wouldn't be.

[ProSense]

8. Republicans have been doing this the entire campaign

Tax evasion is patriotic.

They point to legal investments and conflate these with the penalty for amnesty. If it was legal, there wouldn't be a penalty. Also, the point of amnesty is: fess up before we catch you.

[Hugabear]

9. If you're in a "right-to-work" state, your boss can fire you for just about any reason he wants

If your boss wakes up in a really foul mood and decides he just wants to fire someone at random - there's not much you can do.

[Journeyman]

10. Your employer can also check any of a number of websites that post campaign contributions. . .

and learn there who you support with your money. It's easy enough after the election to then cull the "undesirables."

This is why I'm opposed to such sites. And in light of Citizens United, we should all enjoy the same freedom with our money as corporations do (at least until the ruling is overturned). Freedom of speech is meaningless if it doesn't include the right to be silent, and to keep to yourself those opinions and beliefs you're not ready or willing to share with the larger public.

This is, indeed, the core of the 1st Amendment argument put forth by the Hollywood Ten. How long will we permit what happened to them to continue in our society?