Why Politics is Bad for Your (Companys) Health

Why Politics is Bad for Your (Company's) Health Why Politics is Bad for Your (Company's) Health There are few things more beloved in Wisconsin than sausageand bratwurst in particular. So when people in the state seriously consider stopping buying their brats from one of it most iconic homegrown firms you know that something is up.Anyone who has been paying even scant attention to the news of late can guess what's behind the move: Johnsonville Sausage appears on a list of contributors to the gubernatorial campaign of one Scott Walker.The same Scott Walker who, as governor of Wisconsin, is attempting to pass a bill that will strip collective bargaining rights from members of public trade unionsa move Walker insists is necessary to properly balance the state's budget. (Note that the list makes no distinction between corporate donors and corporations that employ big donors.)Unfortunately for Walker and his supporters, plenty of people disagree with his stance, as witnessed by the tens of thousands of protestors who have been taking to the streets and occupying the Capitol building in Madison of late. That's a lot of potential customers for donors to be ticking off at one stroke.The politics of the bill have been well discussed, and are somewhat beside the point now for many of the companies on the listin fact, it's more likely that they are slightly more concerned with the damage to their bottom lines. That's if all the people threatening to boycott their products because of their political donations actually follow through.While the real effectiveness (Did we give up pumping gas from BP stations after the Gulf of Mexico oil spill in 2010?) of the campaignso far only a handful of disgruntled posts have shown up on Johnsonville's Facebook pageremains to be seen, it does once again raise the issue of how wise it is for companies to insert themselves into the political landscape.The Supreme Court may have decided that corporations have the same rights of free speech as people, but whether companies should exercise those rights is another question entirely. Dona ting to a political campaign is one thing, but as the events in Wisconsin show on a daily basis, modern day politics is a divisive place to be. At the end of the day, while it might be rare for any political issue to have a decisive majority (except, ironically, over the question of collective bargaining), the risks for companiesespecially in an age of instant communication and unprecedented access to informationis concerning.There are any number of politicians who could offer advice to companies on how best to respond when they've been caught doing something that will make them unpopular with a large section of their community. But rather than seeking advice on crisis management, companies would be better-served by not interfering to at all.By Phil Stott, Vault.comRelevant: Facebook: Boycott Scott Walker Contributors