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With the November election approaching, here is information about legally permissible activities for faculty and staff:

Legally permissible political activities for faculty and staff:

• Wearing campaign buttons to work or placing campaign material in personal, assigned space
  • but balancing that free speech right against the obligation to not use visible public facilities to post or present such material, which might leave the impression that the campaign is favored by the institution, its leadership or staff.
• Participating in campaigns on personal time. Personal time is:
  • time outside the individual’s normal work day, or
  • vacation or other approved leave status

Impermissible activities for faculty and staff:  

• Use work time to solicit support, oppose, or collect signatures or money for ballot measures
• Use work time to campaign for or against a candidate for public office
• Use public property to campaign for or against a candidate or measure; except that ‘neutral forum’ public property otherwise open to public use can be used for campaigning, provided you do not engage in such campaigning using work time or other public resources
• Use public facilities or supplies  for campaigns or measures, which includes  office space, telephones, email,  word processing,  paper, and other publicly owned property, for campaigns, whether during or after work hours; there is no exception for de minimis use of public resources for political activities
• Display or distribute political material in or on publicly owned vehicles or facilities
• Use publicly owned facilities to instruct or urge public employees to campaign for candidates or measures, or implying that job performance might be judged according to willingness to use their own time on a campaign,  and
• Use public time or facilities to draft or pass a resolution by an appointed committee or board, taking an official position regarding a pending ballot measure or endorsement of a particular candidate.  See RCW 42.52.180 on Limitations to Use of Public Facilities in Campaigns.                                  

Political creed is a protected classification under the Washington Law Against Discrimination. Persons serving in supervisory capacities should recognize the risk that employees may view overt political statements, including such simple acts as wearing a campaign button, in a manner which negatively impacts an employee’s work environment