Vote.org has written to enterprises such as IBM, Amazon, and Disney, demanding that employees be given time off to vote on November 3.
This is a critical election year in the U.S., and with just a few days left for voting day, it is crucial to see how companies are connecting with their employees and encouraging them to use their paid time off (PTO) to exercise their voting rights.
Vote.org has announced that it has sent open letters to 30 CEOs of large corporations in the U.S., who employ over 7 million American workers, asking them to give their workers paid time off to vote. Vote.org started its ElectionDay.org initiative in 2018. In that year, 150 companies had pledged to offer PTO for voting.
This year, the letters were sent on behalf of this initiative and over 825 pledges from companies have come in. Some of the companies the letters were sent to were Amazon, McDonald’s, CVS Health, IBM, Disney, and FedEx. In fact, Amazon employees have threatened to shut down warehouses if they don’t get the day off to vote. This is a strong sentiment that
This year will be an essential year from an election perspective, and enterprises can control the narrative by enabling time off for employees to exercise their right to vote.
“We understand this is not an empty public relations exercise. There are real costs associated with staggering schedules or closing down for a few hours — let alone an entire day. But corporate leadership is about more than generating short-term profits,†writesOpens a new window Andrea Hailey, CEO of Vote.org, in the letter to each CEO.
Twitterati has also been echoing this sentiment, urging employers with the power and wealth to make a difference.
The fact is that millions of Americans will not vote in this election because they have to work on election day. We need companies like @AmazonOpens a new window to take a stand for voting rights and give workers this sacred day off if they need it.
— MLK Labor (@MLKLabor) October 22, 2020Opens a new window
It’s not about Seattle tech workers, but *all* Amazon workers. Working on Election Day is a top barrier to voting for many ppl. This year will will be especially bad bc of covid. If Amazon leads on this, it could shift the Overton Window on workers everywhere having PTO to vote.
— Emily Cunningham (@emahlee) October 14, 2020Opens a new window
Why Voting Has Been Low
As per the letters that were sent, over 100 million people who were eligible to vote in 2016 did not cast their ballots. Past studies also found that 35% of non-votersOpens a new window had scheduling conflicts, including work, which was the biggest factor in keeping them from voting.
This year presents an opportunity to rectify this, as a significant portion of the population will either be voting early or by mail. Vote.org asserts that organizations must provide PTO and create flexibility around their work so that they can utilize the time to learn about their ballot and vote.
What is the significance of these letters to large corporations with a workforce eligible to vote? It ensures that the corporate sector chooses what is right for the country and its employees as against what is right for its own business.
HR Technology News: Employees Expect Time Off to Learn About Their Ballot: Cornerstone OnDemand Survey
Corporate Support for Employee Voting
MercerOpens a new window has created a comprehensive repository of information specific to U.S. employers about employee voting. This could be the starting point for employers who haven’t planned for it or don’t have enough information.
Some companies’ efforts have gone beyond providing PTO, and other companies could also learn from.
PayPalOpens a new window has announced that they will give paid time off. But it has also offered a paid half-day to workers who volunteer at polling places and has arranged for speaker series on elections. PayPal is one of the three companies that founded Time to Vote in 2018. This is a business-led, nonpartisan coalition that aims to increase voter participation in the U.S. elections.
PatagoniaOpens a new window is working with the nonprofit Vote Forward to provide its workers with letter-writing materials and voters’ addresses, especially those who have not been voting frequently. This will help employees use their working hours to write nonpartisan letters to voters and ask them to vote. It is also hosting once-a-week texting parties for its employees to reach environmentalists who don’t vote. This is the second organization to have founded Time to Vote.
HR Technology News: Unused Time Off Worries Employers: 2 Approaches That Can Help
Companies are finding more and more ways to make voting a safe process for their employees. But there is a greater need to ensure that they actually recognize their right to vote, and big corporations can actively effect this change.