To find out more about the telltale signs of a toxic workplace so you can run far away from it the moment you realize it, we spoke with Marilyn Starkloff, a marketing coordinator and content strategist. According to Marilyn, a toxic workplace can be described in a variety of ways and everyone has their own unique story to tell.
“I recommend finding out whether a job is toxic right away. Don’t squander your time. Time is valuable and it deserves to be spent in the right environment with the right people. You can accomplish this by reading Glassdoor reviews (sometimes—however, some toxic employers will have their employees write fake reviews—mine did this),” she said.
Marilyn said that one major difference between her former employment and her present job was that “I could hear her ranting and cursing at one of the staff as soon as I went in for the interview,” she recounted. However, “I heard laughter in the background at my current non-toxic employment. I'm not sure about you, but I prefer to hear people laugh,” she said.
“A toxic work environment is one where you continually feel like you're walking on glass. Your heart rushes with terror whenever you see your employer. You're frightened to raise questions because you'll be yelled at, rejected, or belittled if you do. As a result, if you don't feel comfortable asking questions, the quality of your job will suffer,” Marilyn said and added that communication is the only way to learn and get the task done efficiently.
Another telltale sign is high turnover, Marilyn explained. “If everyone has only been there for a year or less, there's a good likelihood there's a reason. My advice is to ask, "What is your turnover rate?" in your next interview. This is a question that almost any decent employer will gladly answer.”
A disorganized workplace can also be a red flag. “Within my five years, I understood that disorganization might be the root of most problems. The reason the office was so disorganized was because of the high turnover rate. There was no organizing structure in place, and every job was left open-ended (no awareness of who did what),” the marketing coordinator recounted.
She added that the owner would then accuse and rage at an employee for misplacing documentation, a sample, products, checks, and keys. “Because the organization was in such a state of disarray, this resulted in the accountants staying for only a year or less.”
