TV choices at work may not be protected

Johnny C. Taylor Jr., a human-resources expert, is tackling your questions as part of a series for USA TODAY. Taylor is president and CEO of the Society for Human Resource Management, the world’s largest HR professional society. The questions are submitted by readers, and Taylor’s answers below have been edited for length and clarity.

Question: Why would a worker get written up for changing the breakroom TV channel to Fox News when it’s OK to change the channel to CNN? – Robin

Johnny C. Taylor Jr.: Free-speech rights are guaranteed under the U.S. Constitution, but the Constitution doesn’t apply to private employment.

Employers generally have the authority to control how employees express themselves on the job and are allowed to discipline and even terminate employees who act unprofessionally or create disturbances – and this includes political expression.

Let me explain further. Contrary to popular belief, there is no right to free speech in private workplaces, and political party affiliation and political speech are generally not protected at work.

For example, it is permitted for any employer or supervisor who favors CNN over Fox News because of political reasons to discipline a co-worker for turning on Fox in the breakroom, especially if the broadcast is causing or could cause a disturbance.

Some state laws protect what employees say or how they express themselves in the office, based on their use of federal or state constitutional freespeech rights.

But watching a cable broadcast on break time might not be protected under state law if an employee wasn’t then expressing opinions on the broadcast or amplifying the point of view to influence co-workers.

If your employer is in the private sector and not a government workplace, the company’s bias and judgment in disciplining employees with differing political opinions is allowed.

In other words, the free speech protections of the Constitution and state law likely stop at the employer’s front door.

In the interest of peace and harmony in these contentious times, perhaps the employer should tune the TV to ESPN or HGTV. Then again, maybe the company should unplug the breakroom TV and encourage employees to truly take a break.

Q: Can a company charge different health benefit rates to different employees for the exact same coverage? – Brad

Taylor: For employer-sponsored health plans, the answer is yes – and no. Companies can charge different rates, or premiums, through a tiered system that bases employees’ contributions on their pay.

In other words, those making lower wages pay less, and higher-earners pay more.

But companies cannot discriminate in favor of highly paid employees, nor can they set arbitrary rates. And they certainly can’t set rates based on an employee’s health.

Although companies can charge different premiums, most choose not to do so. According to HR consultancy Aon Hewitt, just 21 percent of employers set health-insurance premiums based on employee pay.

Companies with a sliding scale based on income usually do so out of a sense of fairness. As health insurance gets more expensive and employees absorb more out-of-pocket costs, some employers worry that lower-paid workers will bear an undue burden or will go without health insurance.

Tiers are created as companies commit to trying to provide all their employees – at all pay levels – affordable health-care benefits.

Keep in mind that health insurance rates at small employers – those with fewer than 50 employees – often are based on the ages of the employee and their covered dependents.