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The Law: How to ‘detox’ a toxic workplace
Communication, employee evaluations are key
By Wilford H. Stone, - The Law columnist
Feb. 9, 2025 5:00 am
The Gazette offers audio versions of articles using Instaread. Some words may be mispronounced.
Do you have a toxic workplace?
There is a difference between routine workplace hassles and a work environment that is so toxic it angers employees to the point of quitting.
Toxic workplaces can manifest themselves in several ways: disrespect for others, unfairness and/or inconsistency in following policies, internal competition among employees, micromanaging and abusive bosses, and illegal activities, including discrimination, harassment, and/or retaliation.
These last examples could include a hostile work environment caused by pervasive unwelcome sexual advances, or inappropriate/rude behavior targeting individuals because of their race, age, sexual orientation, or religion (“protected characteristics”).
In cases where the harassment creates a hostile work environment based on protected characteristics, the employer has a legal obligation to promptly stop the behavior.
Termination
In Iowa, an employer can generally terminate an employee for creating a toxic work environment if the actions of that employee are harmful to workplace morale, productivity, or harmony.
Assuming the employee does not have an employment contract that restrains the employer’s ability to act or is not a union member, employers are allowed to act under the state's “at-will” employment doctrine, which permits termination for any lawful reason or no reason at all, as long as it doesn't violate anti-discrimination laws or other legal protections.
Management tips
Aside from getting rid of the problem, what are other management strategies to deal with such toxic conduct? Leaders have significant influence on how to manage toxic employees:
- Role model: If you want to remove toxic behavior, act the way you want your people to act. Be civil. Welcome everyone. Praise often, as praise is often scarce in a toxic work environment.
- Performance evaluations: One important strategy is to include behaviors like respect and teamwork in your employee performance evaluation planning and measurements. Encourage employees to communicate positive messages to coworkers. Management should also refrain from focusing solely on what employees are doing wrong, and instead provide positive feedback for what is going right. As every employer knows, if done well, performance evaluations provide a way for managers to give employees meaningful feedback to improve their performance.
- Discipline: Use your policies and procedures to progressively penalize toxic behavior. Ask what the employee would do differently next time.
- Accurate documentation: Properly documented performance evaluations and discipline also build paper trails, which favor employers in defending against lawsuits. Conversely, written comments that are too general, taken out of context, too charitable, or suddenly very hostile, will not only undermine subsequent discipline of a poor performer but also serve as ammunition for a disgruntled former employee’s lawsuit against the employer. Remember, a paper trail does not appear overnight; an employer has to build it over time. Finally, employers must train managers to understand essential criteria in the performance evaluation, and invest in coaching for them to, in turn, properly coach and discipline the employees they supervise.
- Open channels of communication: Finally, prevention is often more effective than a cure. Instead of focusing on punitive actions, emphasis could be placed on understanding the root causes and providing coaching or training as needed. One of the most recommended preventative measures is fostering a culture of open communication. It can be as simple as regular check-ins, to feedback sessions and town hall meetings to provide employees with platforms to voice concerns, share grievances and provide insights into team dynamics.
Wilford H. Stone is a lawyer with Lynch Dallas in Cedar Rapids. Comments: (319) 365-9101; wstone@lynchdallas.com
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