It's election season, and that means there are plenty of watercooler conversations going on about the latest news or rumor, the latest theory or policy proposal.

But workers and managers alike have to think about what's appropriate when it comes to injecting often volatile partisan politics into the workplace. A group of like-minded friends high-fiving over a candidate's great speech or running-mate selection can leave other workers isolated and awkward. A manager's casual comment can pressure workers to agree, in order to smooth the next performance evaluation.

The wrong button or T-shirt could even cost you your job.

"People don't realize that they can get fired," said Eve Tahmincioglu, author of the CareerDiva blog and a workplace columnist for MSNBC.com. "A private employer can do what they want."

And while most workplaces are fairly flexible about watercooler talk, you should watch your step when the talk gets partisan, career experts say.

"Be aware of your surroundings," Tahmincioglu advises. "If you hear your supervisor talking about a candidate, it may not be a good idea to have a huge poster up about the other candidate."

That same sensitivity works both ways, according to John Mahon, dean of the University of Maine business school. If anything, managers should be even more careful since they are responsible for maintaining a professional work environment.

"There's an extra burden on people who hold leadership positions," Mahon said.

Toning down the political talk is part of an overall trend of office life. Call it political correctness or long-overdue enlightenment, but either way, the reality is that you have to be careful with what you say.

"It's much clearer today that there are off-limit topics than it was 20 years ago," said Frank Kenna III, president of the Connecticut-based Marlin Group, a workplace consulting firm that does an annual "Attitudes in the American Workplace" poll.

"It used to be that making off-color jokes or something was just part of the workplace. But it's much less so today."

A 2007 survey of 701 executives and employees by the American Management Association found almost an even split between people feeling comfortable (39 percent) and uncomfortable (35 percent) talking about politics at work.

It's even more sensitive this year, experts say, because of race and gender issues.

"There is an acuteness around that. A woman, for example, who is a strong supporter of Hillary Clinton is perhaps still smarting a bit," Mahon said. "And it can be easily construed that a criticism of Barack Obama could mean that person might be considered to have a racist outlook."

Another recent trend is differences between younger and older workers.

Kenna said polling showed that 84 percent of workers under the age of 34 were comfortable telling their boss which candidate they support, compared to only 68 percent of older workers.

"You would think older employees, with more experience in the workplace and seniority, would be more comfortable. But it's exactly the other way around," he said.

Tahmincioglu agreed that younger workers are a lot more casual about discussing politics.

"These young kids come in and say 'I'm going to say what I say, I do it every day with my Web site and on Facebook,' " she said. "It's harder for them to ratchet it down when they are at work."

At the Maine Transportation Authority, Human Relations Director Lauren Carrier developed a "workplace harmony" policy, which says co-workers need to be treated with respect.

"Everyone signs on to this. If someone was blatantly campaigning, or overdoing it on the politics, it definitely could be addressed," she said.

"Employees certainly have the ability to converse on politics and so forth, as long as it doesn't create a problem for their fellow employees, or affect public safety," Carrier said.

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