BUS205 Business Law

Introduction

Free speech is permissible at the workplace to a limited extent, based on the general assumption that it does not interfere with the employee’s performance in the job or the relationship with the employer (Goldberg, 2017). The following paper highlights free speech in the workplace, amazon’s policy regarding free speech at the workplace, that it does not allow free speech, and followed by the conclusion.

Organizations should allow their employees to express their opinion in the organizations in order to improve the workplace environments to make it better. Free speech at the workplace is the principle that supports the freedom of an individual to express their opinions as an employee without any fear or judgment (Eliyana & Ma’arif, 2019). But this right is up to a limited extent in the United States as the public employees do have limited speech rights in the workplace but the same is not available to the employees in private organizations. However, public employers may discipline those whose speech adversely impacts the integrity or functions of the employer. In Unites states employers in private organizations do not have the right to free speech at the workplace and even if they have it is in a restricted sense (Balkin, 2018).

The constitution in the United States has given the citizens the right to speak out at the workplace without any intervention by the government, but this right is only extended to the public employees, and corporations are not bound by the same and thus the employees in the US are not allowed to have the free speech access but they have limited speech access only to the extent that is beneficial for the organizations and doesn’t come in the way of any policy or decision of the corporation(Cortina, 2019). Moreover, there is no right to free speech in the workplace but the same is not applicable to private employers as the state laws protect speech and expression, prohibit the employees from participating in corporate politics or the employers to influence the employees, prohibit discrimination (Stohl, Etter & Woo, 2017) .

Recently, the employees of Amazon asked the company to adopt a wide range of plans in order to combat climate change. To which the employees started a protest and company warned two of its employees to be fired if they continue to violate Amazon’s external communications policy (Goldstein et al, 2019). The company in 2020 released its policy with regard to the environment as a climate change called The Climate Pledge, under which amazon declared to reduce its carbon emissions with the aim of becoming carbon-neutral by 2040 in order to avert catastrophic effects of climate change. The company pledged that it will become carbon-neutral within 10 years and aims to become carbon neutral by 2050, besides that amazon would measure and report emissions on regular basis and further will implement the de-carbonization strategies. To this announcement, the employees of amazon criticized the company’s partnership with fossil fuel companies and declared a complete walkout, in response the company wanted the employees that if the company violated their communications policy they are at the risk of facing termination (Livemore, 2019).

It is evident that Amazon does not follow free speech at the workplace as its employees are allowed limited communication as amazon is enforcing the rules which limit the employee’s communication and they are not allowed to speak to any media or public with regard to its public event, environmental policies, etc. and they have to seek the approval from the internal communications management before speaking to journalists or on social media about amazon. Since Amazon threatened to fire two of its employees if they criticize openly about the recent climate change policy it follows that the restricted free speech at the workplace so the employers are not allowed to discuss openly regarding amazon’s policies and decisions in public without any prior authorization (Jones & West, 2017)

Conclusion

Free speech at the workplace is allowed to a limited extent, based on the general assumption that it does not interfere with the employee’s performance in the job or the relationship with the employer. In Unites states employers in private organizations do not have the right to free speech at the workplace and even if they have it is in a restricted sense, the employees of Amazon asked the company to adopt a wide range of plans in order to combat climate change. To which the employees started a protest and the company warned two of its employees to be fired if they continue to violate Amazon’s external communications policy. Thus, it is evident that Amazon does not follow free speech at the workplace as its employees are allowed limited communication as amazon is enforcing the rules which limit the employee’s communication.

References

Goldberg, E. (2017). Competing free speech values in an age of protest. Cardozo L. Rev., 39, 2163.

Eliyana, A., & Ma’arif, S. (2019). Job satisfaction and organizational commitment effect in the transformational leadership towards employee performance. European Research on Management and Business Economics, 25(3), 144-150.

Balkin, J. M. (2018). Free speech is a triangle. Colum. L. Rev., 118, 2011.

Cortina, L. M., Cortina, M. G., & Cortina, J. M. (2019). Regulating rude: Tensions between free speech and civility in academic employment. Industrial and Organizational Psychology, 12(4), 357-375.

Stohl, C., Etter, M., Banghart, S., & Woo, D. (2017). Social media policies: Implications for contemporary notions of corporate social responsibility. Journal of business ethics, 142(3), 413-436.

Goldstein, A., Turner, W. R., Gladstone, J., & Hole, D. G. (2019). The private sector’s climate change risk and adaptation blind spots. Nature Climate Change, 9(1), 18-25.

Livermore, J. (2019). What's Your Organization's Carbon Budget?. Natural Gas & Electricity, 36(5), 1-10.

Jones, R. A., & West, S. R. (2017). The fragility of the free American press. Nw. UL Rev., 112, 567.

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