Toxic workplaces affect not only employee health, but companies' bottom line and SA economy

Bullying in schools is firmly back in the spotlight after an investigation into a shocking incident at Milnerton High (Cape Town) that was filmed and shared on social media.

But bullying and toxicity in the workplace is also an enormous problem in South Africa, impacting not only the health of employees, but the bottom line of companies, and the national fiscus.

Toxic work environments contribute to one in four working South Africans being diagnosed with depression, says Professor Renata Schoeman, Head of the MBA in Healthcare Leadership at Stellenbosch Business School.

Over and above that, lost productivity caused by absenteeism due to depression from this toxicity is estimated to cost the economy R19 billion annually.

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The psychiatrist says silence is one of the biggest enablers of a toxic work culture, with many affected employees opting to leave an organisation rather than report abuse.

One reason for this is that people often feel unheard and unsafe, not being aware of what help is actually available to them, she says in conversation with Sara-Jayne Makwala King.

"They may not be aware of what procedures and guidelines their organisation has to report abuse and toxicity."

The current socio-economic climate and the financial pressure on many South Africans is another important factor.

In this environment, people are sometimes prepared to stay silent for fear of being demoted, losing their job, or not being considered for future promotion, she says. In other cases, they simply give up their jobs and leave a company.

"In relation to the high school bullying case, I believe that the way we should be treating people - with respect and kindness, should start from childhood... also what is the way that we speak up against bullying, so as a society we really need to be looking more systemically at this."

"Once again, if there's a culture where the victim feels it's their fault and they're made the culprit while the perpetrators are being protected, it is difficult to break the silence, but there ARE codes of good conduct that should be in place in organisations to protect against this behaviour."

Does corporate South Africa truly understand the financial cost of toxic work culture, asks Sara-Jayne.

Here Prof. Schoeman raises the socio-economic factor again, saying that some companies have slipped back into viewing the cost of investing in employee health as a luxury.

At the same time, more and more studies reflect that for every rand invested in wellness programmes, the return can be as high as 6.6% to 7.3% in terms of productivity and quality of work - and life, as well.

Subtle workplace bullying includes:

• Silent treatment

• Concealing the truth or withholding information

•  Refusing to help or intervene when asked

•  Not responding to attempts to communicate (phone calls, emails, meeting requests)

•  Intentional exclusions in conversations, meetings or praise

•  Cutting you off while you’re talking

•  Keeping you out of the loop of work-related social events

•  Deliberately delaying and blocking progress

•  Taking credit

•  Unwarranted criticism

•  Playing employees against each other

•  Unrealistic expectations that set you up for failure

•  Blame shifting

For tips on beating the bullies and recovering from abuse, read Prof. Schoeman's blog post here.

To listen to Professor Renata Schoeman in conversation with Sara-Jayne Makwala King on CapeTalk's Weekend Breakfast, click on the audio link below: