Do you Work in a Toxic Environment?

We all experience bad days at work; at times there is a difficult week or an entire exhausting quarter. Fortunately, we get breaks in-between and get over it soon enough. However, if a miserable job becomes your life and you feel like there’s no ounce of good left in you, perhaps it is time to re-evaluate your situation. Your workplace should be a place that excites and challenges you, while granting the opportunity to grow. Working in a toxic environment is the opposite of all those things; also, it goes against your civil and legal rights.

Employment Law attorney in Irvine, CA, describes ten signs of a toxic work environment:

1. Every day is a struggle

Each and every morning, the mere idea of going to work wears you out. When you start your day at work, time seems to pass slower than usual. Every moment you are in a state of fight or flight. The stress of workload and deadlines does not allow you to relax for a minute.  

2. Nobody seems happy or healthy

You cannot remember the last time someone smiled or had a lighthearted conversation at the workplace. Most of your coworkers look pale and frustrated, and you can relate. Colleagues are frequently calling in sick or come to work looking ill. More than often, the work space resembles a hospice.

3. Lack of Communication/Poor Communication

Effective communication is the secret ingredient to success for every business. Zero interaction or a vague exchange of dialogues at the workplace is the root cause of all failures. Why aren’t people talking to each other, transferring complete instructions, asking questions, and believing in teamwork?

4. Discrimination and Bullying

If people are being treated differently because of their age, color, gender, ethnicity, culture, religion, sexual orientation, disability, marital status, physical appearance, etc., do not let it be. Any form of discrimination, harassment, and bullying at the workplace is illegal and must not be tolerated. If you report injustice and get snubbed or suffer retaliation, you may sue your employer.  

5. Poor Leadership

Poor leadership along the workplace hierarchy is counterproductive and promotes disorder. Bosses and managers, far too incompetent to supervise, continuously test the staff’s patience and make them question their own sanity.

6. Gossip/Clique Culture

If there’s an exclusive group of people at the workplace who make everyone else feel left out or intimidated, an office full of grownups can start to feel like the worst phase of high school. This clique is the source of gossip, rumors, politics, and drama that never ends well.

7. Large Turnover

If the place you work at has a massive turnover on a regular basis, there is definitely something wrong with it. While others are escaping from this inferno, perhaps you should start working on an exit strategy too.

8. Demoralizing Feedback

When you are not rewarded or even subtly appreciated for your hard work, it is natural to lose morale. It is heartrending when your superiors lack basic courtesy, but expect perfection from you. Your employer may indirectly convey that you are lucky to even have this job; are you though?

9. Unhealthy Competition

Competitiveness at work is a good thing as long as participants can keep it civil and respect certain boundaries. However, if colleagues turn to sabotage and manipulation for the sake of winning, the workplace becomes an ugly battlefield.

10. Disturbed private life

If the tension and anxiety at work has crept into your life outside the workplace, you are headed for doom and gloom. The vibes of the toxic environment will disrupt your inner peace, sleep, relationships, aspirations, and overall health.