プロジェクト管理の老舗Basecampで「社員の政治的意見表明禁止」により社員3分の1が退社

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プロジェクト管理アプリのパイオニアであるBasecampではファウンダー、CEOのJason Fied（ジェイソン・フリード）氏による社員の政治的議論の禁止が大きな議論を巻き起こした。これをきっかけにBasecampの60名の社員の3分の1が持ち株の会社買取を受け入れて退社したという。退社の原因としてこの禁止令を上げるツイートが多数あった。

米国時間4月26日に、Basecampのジェイソン・フリード氏は社員が業務の場で社会的・政治的な意見を表明することを禁止することをブログで発表した。フリード氏は次のように書いている。

政治や社会一般に多少なりと関係する議論は、すぐに不愉快なものになる。ある方向の議論に参加しないことはその方向に反対したことになるとか、議論に参加すればしたでバッシングされるといったことが起きる（ような空気を作る）べきではない。

Basecampからの退職は会社に大きな影響を与えるはずだ。ツイートによればBasecampのデザイン部門の責任者、マーケティング部門の責任者、カスタマーサポート部門の責任者が全員退社するという。また同社のiOSチームも一斉に退職したらしい。退職社員の多くは長年同社に勤務していた。

After 7 years, today is my last day at Basecamp. I plan on taking a little time off, but if anyone is looking for an iOS engineer, I would love to chat, my DMs are open.

— Zach Waugh (@zachwaugh) April 30, 2021

I resigned today from my role as Head of Marketing at Basecamp due to recent changes and new policies.

I'll be returning to entrepreneurship. My DMs are open if you'd like to talk or you can reach me at andy@detroitindie.com

— Andy Didorosi (@ThatDetroitAndy) April 30, 2021

As a result of the recent changes at Basecamp, today is my last day at the company. I joined over 15 years ago as a junior programmer and I’ve been involved with nearly every product launch there since 2006.

— Sam Stephenson (@sstephenson) April 30, 2021

Basecampでの政治活動禁止規則は、CoinbaseのCEOであるBrian Armsgrong（ブライアン・アームストロング）氏が2020年末に掲げた方針とほぼ同様だアームストロング氏は「特定の政治的主張や候補者の推薦」についての議論は、同社の本質的業務の遂行に悪影響があるとして禁止した。Coinbaseでは1200人の社員のうち60人前後がこの方針の変更を受けて退職した。Basecampにおける退職者の率はCoinbaseの場合よりはるかに高く、深刻なものだ。

Coinbaseと同様、Basecampは「新しい政治的的議論の禁止命令は差別的待遇を受けている社員を狙い撃ちにした箝口令だ」という強い批判を巻き起こした。

白人以外、また人種を問わずLGBTQである社員にとって何が「政治的」かという線引きは困難なものとなる。例えばBlack Lives Matter（ブラック・ライブズ・マター）運動は、ある基準では政治的話題とみなされるかもしれないが、当事者である多くの社員にとっては極めて個人的かつ重要な問題だ。白人男性のエンジニアのトップが政治的議論禁止令に強く反対したのは偶然ではなく、職場に分断を持ち込むと考えたからだ。

Basecampの共同ファウンダーでCTOのDavid Heinemeier Hansson（デビッド・ハイネマイヤー・ハンソン）氏は、自らのブログ記事でフリード氏の禁止令を敷衍し「フォーラムやトピックでテーマの選択が適切かどうか疑問がある場合は公開する前に（我々に）質問してください」と述べている。

Platformerによると、フリード氏の公開状は事情のすべてを語っていないという。Basecampの社員によれば「主要な問題は特定の候補を応援するかどうかではない。Basecamp自体のDEI（ダイバーシティーやインクルージョンの増進）活動へのコミットメントについての社内の評価の相違から緊張が生じた」としている。しかしフリード氏のブログでは「社員が主導していたあるDEI活動が解散させられることになったのが社内緊張の原因の1つとなったことが婉曲に触れられている。

しかしフリード氏は「我々はプロジェクト管理、チーム・コミュニケーション、メール活用アプリなどを開発、運営会社であり、社会活動を目的とする会社ではない」と書いている。

画像クレジット：Steve Bronstein / Getty Images

【原文】

Following a controversial ban on political discussions earlier this week, Basecamp employees are heading for the exits. The company employs around 60 people, and roughly a third of the company appears to have accepted buyouts to leave, many citing new company policies.

On Monday, Basecamp CEO Jason Fried anounced in a blog post that employees would no longer be allowed to openly share their “societal and political discussions” at work.

“Every discussion remotely related to politics, advocacy or society at large quickly spins away from pleasant,” Fried wrote. “You shouldn’t have to wonder if staying out of it means you’re complicit, or wading into it means you’re a target.”

Basecamp’s departures are significant. According to Twitter posts, Basecamp’s head of design, head of marketing and head of customer support will all depart. The company’s iOS team also appears to have quit en masse and many departing employees have been with the company for years.

The no-politics rule at Basecamp follows a similar stance that Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong staked out late last year. Armstrong also denounced debates around “causes or political candidates” arguing that such discussions distracted from the company’s core work. About 60 members of Coinbase’s 1,200 person staff took buyouts in light of the internal policy change — a ratio that makes the exodus at Basecamp look even more dramatic.

Like Coinbase, Basecamp was immediately criticized for muzzling its employees over important issues, many of which disproportionately impact marginalized employees.

Drawing the line on “political” topics becomes murky very quickly for any non-white or LGBTQ employees, for whom many issues that might be seen as political in nature in some circles — the Black Lives Matter movement, for instance — are inextricably and deeply personal. It’s not a coincidence these grand stands against divisive “politics” at work issue down from white male tech executives.

“If you’re in doubt as to whether your choice of forum or topic for a discussion is appropriate, please ask before posting,” Basecamp CTO David Heinemeier Hansson wrote in his own blog post, echoing Fried.

According to Platformer, Fried’s missive didn’t tell the whole story. Basecamp employees instead said the tension arose from internal conversations about the company itself and its commitment to DEI work, not free-floating arguments about political candidates. Fried’s blog post does mention one particular source of tension in a roundabout way, referencing an employee-led DEI initiative that would be disbanded.

“We make project management, team communication, and email software,” Fried wrote. “We are not a social impact company.”

（文：Taylor Hatmaker、翻訳：滑川海彦@Facebook）

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