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It is unfortunate that work—a necessary evil in life, unless you’re born under an extremely lucky star—also comes in a variety of shades of toxicity. So, not only are you by statistical proxy forced to do it, it sucks too.
But, there are ways and means to avoid it by keeping an eye on the signs—signs that women of Reddit were recently pointing out as indicative of get the heck out of there right now. Or, at least at your earliest convenience. But no later than 2 work weeks.
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#1
When a bunch of staff are in cliques and it feels more like highschool than a professional work environment.
RELATED:
#2
If your coworker gossips about other coworkers, they will gossip about you.
Canandelabra 9 months ago
I've never worked at a place where people didn't gossip. Nature of the beast. Just keep your tongue in cheek when appropriate and hope for the best.
#3
Multiple people have quit because of one person but that person still works here.
Many people are more than aware of what toxicity is and how it manifests in a workplace. Sadly, It’s all too real for 1 in 5 employees who have to battle toxic environments on the daily.
Yep, nearly 20% of employees report having to fight against toxic work conditions like failure to act on feedback, ignoring work-life balance and unfair treatment, just to name a few.
#4
"We wear a lot of hats around here."
Translation - "You will be stuck with a lot of c**p that is not in your job description, but nobody else wants to do!".
KatSaidWhat 9 months ago
I'm fine wearing a lot of hats so long as you compensate me accordingly.
Jason 9 months ago
Could just be a small shop. Hard to have dedicated people for things when there aren't many people with the company
Sven Horlemann 9 months ago
As a proactive, interested person, I learned to play dumb occasionally - and not volunteer. "No idea", "I don't understand what is going on" etc. are good answers. Managers quickly go and look elsewhere. Maybe even in the mirror :-)
Barong 9 months ago
Taking on other duties in a small business is common and necessary. I worked as a cook and chef in small restaurants where I took out trash deep cleaned the kitchen. I’ve also worked in restaurants in large casinos where they had other staff that did that. Wearing different hats is ok and a good way to learn and understand the whole business, to network within the company. I worked for Emergency Management and disasters where we specialized “wearing one hat” or “wore different hats” depending on our skill and if duties were growing or contracting to meet the requirements of the disaster response and recovery. We would take on more duties “hats” as things slowed and people were released or hand off duties “as new specialist were brought in when things were ramping up. Many duties were learned on the job from others that had experience to be able to use for the next disaster or prior or taking on other duties so we were not thrown into something without being qualified.
Charles McChristy 9 months ago
All this means is cross-training. Most places do this, and if you can't handle it good luck finding a job.
The Original Bruno 9 months ago
I wear a lot of hats. It comes from having a diverse skillset and an employer who recognizes that.
DC 9 months ago
Oh yeah, ... temp working is great for such! Also, a neglective introduction into habits and norms, some over-the-shoulder lessons on the fly, that will eventually lead somewhere nobody wants to be. You end up sorting CAD models and find out that, basically, the oh-so-educated dude behind you CAD'ed the same standard feature every time it was used in a project, safed it somewhere, well-hidden, and just left you with a step file that is built into assemblies of, otherwise, pure pedigree. Damned, I took a few minutes to download the right screws in current formatting, and they've just ... One made a model each time ... one downloaded a bunch of stp files, dropped them somewhere, with cryptic filenames not indicating any ... and that guy sits there and basically remodels, redraws, re-everythings a stupid little adapter that, each time if modeled right, may take some time, but as he's done it so often, he started to ... wait for it ... reclaim the drawing, but make a simplified model.
#6
Husband-wife managerial team. Run!
Charles McChristy 9 months ago
Nah, I've worked with some great couples for bosses. I've only had one bad experience.
It goes without saying that toxicity at the workplace is anything but good. It is known to lead to increased absenteeism, reduced productivity and lower levels of enthusiasm. And that’s just the start. Ultimately, it can start seeping into other areas in life, affecting your general satisfaction and mental health.
#7
When you start dreading the weekend being over because you don't want to go to work on Monday. Beyond just a general "I love my free time" feeling.
#8
When the managers and other decision makers are bubbly and happy during meetings while the rank-and-file drones are exhausted, quiet and disengaged.
#9
Cult like reverence required for the leaders or founders.
And that’s the key concept here: happiness. There is an argument of how folks are poisoning themselves by working in toxic environments as it gradually affects an employee’s happiness. And if you’re not happy as a human being, other mental health problems start coming out of the woodwork.
#10
If there are a suspiciously low number of people who have been with the company for more than 2 years.
Also any kind of “employee appreciation” that isn’t an annual event that legacy staff looks forward to.
#11
Everyone is joking about the work environment being super tough and people developing various ailments from it (e.g. migraines or stomach issues). These are not jokes, these are warnings.
#12
When there's no real training, just 'ask someone if you're not sure' - and then whoever you're asking tells you by rote, telling you 'click this, then that' without demonstrating a proper understanding of *why* tasks should be done in a certain way. When they can't answer any questions about the process and aren't enabled to problem-solve, it reflects micromanagement and lack of communication, and usually a disinterest in lower level staff.
It is important to note that there are no clear criteria as to what a toxic environment is outside of it affecting one’s well-being.
One person might feel uncomfortable with a manager, while others have no problem with them. Same goes for the company culture, the employees, the corporate structure and pretty much anything else. It is ultimately subjective.
Whatever the case, something always has to change.
#14
Poor communication. Everything is gossip, and you have to know the right people to get any information.
Alexis Pandas 9 months ago
There's a German word "Herrschaftswissen" (hard to translate, approximately ''power knowledge" or "domination knowledge"). It's information that you have because you're in a position of power and/or gives you an advantage/power over others that do not have the same information so it's withheld. I find in environments with high levels of rivalry and a strong hierarchy this is often why there's a lack of transparency.
#15
No one takes their PTO, and if you do you’re given a nasty side eye.
Toxic work environments are best avoided before entering them, and there are several telltale signs to look out for.
One of the biggest and easier to stop red flags is the turnover rate. These are most often caused by poor management, negative work culture, or lack of employee support. In the long run, not only do the employees suffer, but the company’s bottom line does so too.
#16
They won’t do anything in writing. For example, during my interview they mentioned it would be a fully remote position once onboarded/90 days on the job. I brought it up to my hiring manager once I past the date and they mentioned that “they never said that” and “it’s not in writing so they wouldn’t honor it”.
#17
When they treat the interview process like a reality show and invite 20 people all at once and you go through rounds where at the end they have you line up in two rows and announce which row will continue the interview process.
No thanks.
#18
When a guy can sexually harass a woman at the workplace, she goes and complains about it to management, management makes *her* transfer to a different area to settle the matter, then not even a year later they promote HIM as manager over her area she was forced to transfer to, thus making her eventually quit because her complaints didn’t mean squat when it’s one of upper managements bros.
This happened at my workplace a couple years ago to a friend of mine I worked with. Horrible stuff. All of the upper management and area managers are apart of this blatant good ol boy system and it is horrible. They only promote those type of guys too. Anytime they promote a women it’s because they got forced into it or because one of those good ol boys wants to get their spouses in the role.
Canandelabra 9 months ago (edited)
I was moved to another area, and the a$$hole approached me with another male coworker to try to call me out for telling my manager he had massaged my shoulders. I already felt like I tattled so I tried to avoid him. He had all the males on break giving me a hard time about it. All I wanted was to be away from his area. Retail nightshift, small crew.
Poor communication is another big one. In ideal cases, company staff that communicates clearly, openly and honestly foster trust and collaboration. And if you don’t do that, then there is little to no communication and so nothing realistically gets done, fostering a culture of passive aggression, contempt and just generally nobody having a good time.
#19
When they’re late to do your scheduled job interview.
jade s 9 months ago
As someone that's been on the other side of the fence don't be so quick to write off companies for this. If you are being interviewed you will be one of several people being interviewed that day one after the other. Things happen like people getting stuck in traffic, zoom stops working, manager has to respond to an emergency. Its not a game and we don't want to keep you waiting but if the person in front of you over runs because of something out of their control I'm not going to cut their interview short and score a 0 for the last 2 questions, destroying their chances of getting a job so we don't inconvenience you by asking you to wait 15 mins. Would you expect that if you got stuck in traffic or got a flat tyre etc.
#21
I always ask about team building during the interview. "Beers after work" makes it toxic to me.
Canandelabra 9 months ago
I'm not your pal, I come here to fill my duty for $$, and my free time is mine period.
Micromanagement is also often cited as a sign of toxic management. It’s when a superior overdoes it with their control, surveillance and management of work related tasks delegated to other employees. It shows lack of trust and takes away the opportunity for employees to prove their potential for ownership. On top of that, it stifles growth, and, again, nobody’s happy.
#22
"the last person that worked here walked out and quit".
#23
You dread every shift and come up with excuses to avoid work. Or you're angry while you're there and take a while to come down from it when you're off the shift.
#24
Where even newcomers stop smiling after 3 days.
It is not unreasonable to think that unreasonable demands are a part of a truly toxic environment. These are time consuming, draining or just flat out annoying—and it doesn’t get the job done, which entails a whole lot of trouble. It’s even worse if the employee is provided zero support under these conditions.
#26
High turnover .
#27
People crying at their laptop.
Yes people was me.
KatSaidWhat 9 months ago
Was me at home after work until my friend said he would be putting my resignation in for me. am currently watching my om do this. Sadly, and timely, a post about this from a year ago came up in my FB memories. So...
Believe it or not, lack of opportunities for growth is also considered a toxic workplace trait. It doesn’t matter if it’s structural (there are realistically no other opportunities) or artificial (someone is stifling your progress), all of it leads to dissatisfaction and a need to change that.
Oh, and also, toxic employees—they don’t help. Red flag.
#28
Someone that has been there for quite a while quits and for the next six months everything that goes wrong was their fault because of…… just because.
#29
The only friends and romantic partners the employees have are each other, not anyone else outside of work.
#30
Women putting other women down. It may sound obvious, but it can be hard to catch at first. Making jabbing comments, making you feel bad for not working on days where you aren’t scheduled, judging you, questioning you on why you do things the way you do them, trying to make you feel stupid. I know it sounds like nothing you can’t just blow off, but it really makes the work time miserable.
What do you think ?
PFD 9 months ago
Scrolled through all and how the hell does NOT ONE mention employees being "freelance" not payroll? I guess it's US dominated, and the US doesn't do employee rights, but in countries with employee protections that's both the most common abuse and a clear red flag. Unfortunately, it can be so ubiquitous that many people can't afford to heed the warning...
Steve Hall 9 months ago
Many of these items were listed like this is the only job on the planet. If you aren't happy, move on, you owe that much to yourself.
pineapple87 9 months ago
It's not always that simple. Finding a new job is time-consuming, and it can be hard to find free energy and concentration when you're drained.
Load More Replies...
Pat Curran 9 months ago
Years ago I interviewed for a sales position with an insurance supplement company, a big one (they have their name on an NFL stadium). The "interview" consisted of a 90-minute presentation to about 20 candidates, in which local managers raved about what a great job/opportunity this was. Essentially, they were selling us the job, and selling it hard. It reminded me of Amway presentations and time-share pitches I'd suffered through before. I thought, if the job is THAT great, you wouldn't have to be hard-selling it to 20 candidates at a time. Went home and looked the company up on Glassdoor and found out most of what I was told was lies and the job was miserable. Even though I'd been out of work for a while and really needed a paycheck, I gave that one a hard pass.
Danish Susanne 9 months ago
I am an old age pensioner but when I was still working I used the public transport system as an excuse to come in very early for an interview. That made it possible for me to walk around a little and listen to how employees were talking to each other and see if most were smiling. I have always found that a surefire way of avoiding toxic work places.
Ken Beattie 9 months ago
From a Government perspective, whenever there is a change of Government and a branch is "swept" out. ie: They were all political appointees. When you see 10 out of 12 people from the Director down get axed and replaced you know the new ones are all basically yes men for the new Minister. You also know that strategies and policies implemented by the previous management are going to be either thrown out, or rebranded as "new and improved" and claimed by the new people.
pineapple87 9 months ago
When you ask current employees what they like the most about working there and they struggle to answer or come up with something generic, run.
Simba 9 months ago
And I like to add the most redundant and useless 'annual employee survey' for a global company. Wasting time for everyone because when the results are out, the management will most definitely get those who have complained or are unsatisfied to solve their own problems (the 'you raised the issues, you find a solution to solve it' type of solution).
Lee Stone 9 months ago
Toxic positivity. If the company leadership shares aspirational messages every meeting and only wants to talk about solutions (or worse, only what's going well), I find those organizations are often wildly dysfunctional. Sometimes it's hard to like the "but what about" member of the team slowing things down, but those individuals often save groups from (very positively) implementing solutions with disastrous foreseeable consequences.
Petra Schaap 9 months ago
man i have seen some s**t during the years. Some places i cleaned at were toxic like hell and absolutely made my mind that i never wanted an office job (yes, i know this happens everywhere) One time i worked as a temp, walked into a big open office around 5pm. one woman still working, so i said hi how are you. Next day she was there again so i said hi how are you, isnt it great that the sun finally came out today! She started crying because i was the only one the spoke to her that day. RUN GIRL RUN!! i think about her a lot, hope she's doing better now!
Emma S 9 months ago (edited)
You work for the NHS. Obviously that one is UK specific. The NHS is great, they do amazing work and I would have died without it. However, as a workplace it's one of the most toxic organisations to work for. No support for staff, so they end up burned out. Any complaints are brushed under the carpet or twisted to make the person complaining look like they're just making a fuss for no reason. Too many senior managers that do very little. For an organisation that is supposed to be about caring for people, the NHS is not good at caring for it's own staff. Then they wonder why they can't fill vacancies. I am talking from personal experience. I'd never work for the NHS ever again.
PFD 9 months ago
It's all trusts these days, isn't it? I've never worked for the NHS but I have family members who do, and my impression has been it depends on the trust - there's no one "NHS" to speak of any more. I've heard horror stories but also very very positive things depending where people are. I could be wrong though, it may just depend on sectors, teams etc.
Load More Replies... PFD 9 months ago
Scrolled through all and how the hell does NOT ONE mention employees being "freelance" not payroll? I guess it's US dominated, and the US doesn't do employee rights, but in countries with employee protections that's both the most common abuse and a clear red flag. Unfortunately, it can be so ubiquitous that many people can't afford to heed the warning...
Steve Hall 9 months ago
Many of these items were listed like this is the only job on the planet. If you aren't happy, move on, you owe that much to yourself.
pineapple87 9 months ago
It's not always that simple. Finding a new job is time-consuming, and it can be hard to find free energy and concentration when you're drained.
Load More Replies... Pat Curran 9 months ago
Years ago I interviewed for a sales position with an insurance supplement company, a big one (they have their name on an NFL stadium). The "interview" consisted of a 90-minute presentation to about 20 candidates, in which local managers raved about what a great job/opportunity this was. Essentially, they were selling us the job, and selling it hard. It reminded me of Amway presentations and time-share pitches I'd suffered through before. I thought, if the job is THAT great, you wouldn't have to be hard-selling it to 20 candidates at a time. Went home and looked the company up on Glassdoor and found out most of what I was told was lies and the job was miserable. Even though I'd been out of work for a while and really needed a paycheck, I gave that one a hard pass.
Danish Susanne 9 months ago
I am an old age pensioner but when I was still working I used the public transport system as an excuse to come in very early for an interview. That made it possible for me to walk around a little and listen to how employees were talking to each other and see if most were smiling. I have always found that a surefire way of avoiding toxic work places.
Ken Beattie 9 months ago
From a Government perspective, whenever there is a change of Government and a branch is "swept" out. ie: They were all political appointees. When you see 10 out of 12 people from the Director down get axed and replaced you know the new ones are all basically yes men for the new Minister. You also know that strategies and policies implemented by the previous management are going to be either thrown out, or rebranded as "new and improved" and claimed by the new people.
pineapple87 9 months ago
When you ask current employees what they like the most about working there and they struggle to answer or come up with something generic, run.
Simba 9 months ago
And I like to add the most redundant and useless 'annual employee survey' for a global company. Wasting time for everyone because when the results are out, the management will most definitely get those who have complained or are unsatisfied to solve their own problems (the 'you raised the issues, you find a solution to solve it' type of solution).
Lee Stone 9 months ago
Toxic positivity. If the company leadership shares aspirational messages every meeting and only wants to talk about solutions (or worse, only what's going well), I find those organizations are often wildly dysfunctional. Sometimes it's hard to like the "but what about" member of the team slowing things down, but those individuals often save groups from (very positively) implementing solutions with disastrous foreseeable consequences.
Petra Schaap 9 months ago
man i have seen some s**t during the years. Some places i cleaned at were toxic like hell and absolutely made my mind that i never wanted an office job (yes, i know this happens everywhere) One time i worked as a temp, walked into a big open office around 5pm. one woman still working, so i said hi how are you. Next day she was there again so i said hi how are you, isnt it great that the sun finally came out today! She started crying because i was the only one the spoke to her that day. RUN GIRL RUN!! i think about her a lot, hope she's doing better now!
Emma S 9 months ago (edited)
You work for the NHS. Obviously that one is UK specific. The NHS is great, they do amazing work and I would have died without it. However, as a workplace it's one of the most toxic organisations to work for. No support for staff, so they end up burned out. Any complaints are brushed under the carpet or twisted to make the person complaining look like they're just making a fuss for no reason. Too many senior managers that do very little. For an organisation that is supposed to be about caring for people, the NHS is not good at caring for it's own staff. Then they wonder why they can't fill vacancies. I am talking from personal experience. I'd never work for the NHS ever again.
PFD 9 months ago
It's all trusts these days, isn't it? I've never worked for the NHS but I have family members who do, and my impression has been it depends on the trust - there's no one "NHS" to speak of any more. I've heard horror stories but also very very positive things depending where people are. I could be wrong though, it may just depend on sectors, teams etc.
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