Is It OK to Talk Politics in a Job Interview

Is It OK to Talk Politics in a Job bewerbungsgesprchIs It OK to Talk Politics in a Job InterviewSteer clear of charged topics to avoid this deadly third rail of your job search.In our democracy, voting is something of a sacred right that should never be taken for granted. But that doesnt mean that as a job seeker your political views can be expressed anywhere and everywhere.From a job-searching perspective, unless youre going after a job thats affiliated with a particular party, why would you bring that up? said Tammy Gooler Loeb, a career and executive coach in the Boston area. You dont know how other people feel.A lot of times, a view you have as a voter could be a deal breaker for the person on the other side of the desk. If that person is a hiring manager and youre in the middle of a big job interview, politics could be the deadly third rail of your job search.It might seem strange that a conviction you hold so dear - whether its about the war in Iraq or Mayor Michael Bloombergs latest attempt to make New York City healthier - can actually be so offensive to someone else, but experts say that job seekers shouldnt take that risk, especially on a job interview where youre being scrutinized on everything you say.Unless it has some specific role in the job youre applying for, I think it has no distribution policy in the conversation, said Loeb, who used to work as a political strategist in the cutthroat world of Boston politics.Everybody has their own beliefs, and one persons passion could be aleidhers angst. A recent poll shows that politics separate Americans more than anything else in the county, including race and class. We are such a divided country right now, Loeb said.In an election year, this polarization gets even more extreme, and its best to avoid political topics - especially the stickier ones such as healthcare, gun control and abortion rights. Sometimes, just the mention of a topic can put off a recruiting manager even if you didnt mean to expr ess a point of view.For instance, the phrase Obamacare has been absorbed into the American vocabulary as a synonym for the controversial Affordable Care Act. However, its roots come from the heated political debate surrounding the passage of the law, and use of the phrase can be construed as having a negative opinion on the law itself - depending how you say it. I think it depends on what tone you use when you say Obamacare, Loeb said. Ninety percent of all communication is nonverbal.Other seemingly benign phrases can squash your hopes of a new job as well. Conversations can get touchy when people start talking about taxes, Loeb said. Sometimes that gets into talking about military spending. She added that even non-political personal matters can create unwanted friction between an applicant and a hiring manager.If youre in a job interview, you dont bring up what religion you are or how many children you have, Loeb said. There are some things that are not relevant. A New Yorker liv ing in Boston, Loeb joked that even some sports feuds, such as the Yankees-Red Sox rivalry, can touch on sensitive areas and should be handled carefully during a job interview. But when it comes to your personal politics, she said its best to save that for the voting booth.