A toxic culture is the key driver of continued resignations. Here's what companies need to do to fix ... [+]
Employee quit rates continue to dominate headlines as employers struggle to fill vacancies. Media headlines often report that leavers are simply jumping to new companies for higher earnings. But what prompts employees to look elsewhere, and what can companies do to retain them?
If the answer was only about compensation, leaders would know precisely what to do. Unfortunately, finding a solution to this talent challenge is more complex.
According to one survey of 2,200 U.S. workers, 62% claimed the top reason for quitting was a toxic environment. An MIT analysis was more direct when they reported that toxic culture was the driver of the great resignation.
A toxic environment could mean many different things, from a micromanaging boss to allowing workplace bullies to go unchecked. In most cases, working remotely does not shelter employees from toxicity. A dysfunctional workplace is just that–dysfunctional. Employee responses to workplace toxicity are to leave or quit quietly–doing the bare minimum to get the job done.
Dr. Tiffany Jana endorses quiet quitting so long as the employee meets their job requirements.
“If you are continually subjected to microaggressions or Subtle Acts of Exclusion (SAE), you don’t owe anything extra. If you are not appreciated or compensated for the extra you keep signing up for, stop raising your hand. And if you are being asked to do substantively more than the job requires, especially if it exceeds the agreed time commitment, hard pass.”
SAE is a term for microaggressions coined by Jana and Dr. Michael Baran, who co-authored Subtle Acts of Exclusion: How to understand, identify and stop microaggressions.
Ageism is one of the most prevalent forms of microaggression in today's workplace.
A subtle act of exclusion would be when a hiring manager suggests that an older applicant wouldn’t make a good cultural fit. In fact, ageism is one of the most prevalent forms of microaggression in today’s workplace.
What message is being sent to the team when older applicants and employees are treated differently? That talent has an expiration date. That getting older is a bad thing, even though everyone waking up in the morning is participating in the aging process. Not only does this thinking exclude others but it also perpetuate ageist stereotypes. Moreover it creates a shadow fear for younger employees who suddenly see their futures limited by time. Fear equates to toxicity.
Take Action
Companies experiencing unprecedented loss of talent need to root out the causes. That means asking employees and former employees to reveal the blindspots and ask for input for how best to move forward.
Creating a strategy for change begins with investigating the not-so-pleasant revelations that an anonymous employee survey may reveal. If that investigation leads you to toxic managers, you need to eliminate them, regardless of how painful that may feel. Toxic leaders will never help you create an employee culture of belonging. Lack of action will further deteriorate the trust between employer and employees and will only worsen engagement and retention.
Taking action also requires training and retraining.
A recent article by Barbara J. Bowes emphasized more effort on management training, especially as it relates to ageism, one of the most prevalent microaggressions in the workplace today.
“This includes understanding all the elements of discrimination as well as the preponderance of ageism and how to deal with it. After all, managers play a key role in creating an inclusive work environment; if they are not aware of their own prejudices and biases, they can influence corporate culture in a negative way.”
Bowes, a longtime HR professional, author and speaker, understands the workplace and the challenges of proactively creating an inclusive employee environment. While leaders must establish the vision, it takes everyone to create it. And the way to accomplish that is through training for all employees–especially managers.
Know Your Limits
Diversity, Equity and Inclusion are created when a company takes mindful, deliberate actions. It’s the collective result of proactive, authentic measures over time that creates an environment welcoming of everyone’s contribution.
Belonging is different because the company cannot create it. The individual must experience it. In other words, belonging is an internal response to an external environment.
Toxic work environments will never foster a culture of belonging. Without a sense of belonging, employees will continue to leave, quietly quit or underperform and undermine company success. For leaders, this is a clear sign that the employee culture is in deep need of detoxification.
You know what to do. Dig deep to understand. Ask your employees what they need and want. Take action.
