Civility usually is demonstrated through manners, courtesy, politeness, and a general awareness of the rights, wishes, concerns, and feelings of others. It includes the behavior that helps to preserve the norms for mutual respect at work.
In 2016, 62% of employees were treated rudely at work at least once a month, according to a global, annual poll on workplace incivility by McKinsey & Co. Since the poll began in 1998, rude behavior has increased at an increasing rate — which means that every year, chances go up that managers and employees are being dismissive, demeaning, and discounting to one another.
How Civility is Hurting Your Workplace
Incivility is a bug, and it’s contagious,” said researcher Christine Porath at a Masters Series session at the SHRM 2018 Annual Conference & Exposition in Chicago.
That’s right. Simple rudeness and disrespect can pass from person to person like a virus, said Porath, an associate professor at Georgetown University’s McDonough School of Business and author of Mastering Civility: A Manifesto for the Workplace (Grand Central Publishing, 2017).
Incivility Impacts Workplace Productivity
There is also a cost for incivility in lost productivity. Stress stemming from a less-than-civil work environment can severely diminish productivity. Research from the National Institutes of Health shows that working in a group where incivility is present affects people’s mental health, even after accounting for general stress and the incivility an individual personally experienced. An employee doesn’t have to be part of the targeted population to be affected. An entire team may get pulled off track thinking about an incident, how they should respond, or whether they’re in the line of fire.
Where to Start?
Manager Training. In order to effectively address incivility, training for managers should include respect and relationship building. Getting to know employees on a personal level shows respect and helps build trust – and stands out as a rarity in this day and age. When it comes to workplace communication, you, as the manager, can set the standard for civility beyond conflict avoidance. Making civility as important as team goals and results is key to team-building, as well as building a culture of respect and positive engagement.
Manage your energy. “The No. 1 reason … people say that they’re rude is because of stress,” she said. In other words, being nice starts with being nice to yourself. That includes getting plenty of sleep, eating well and exercising.
Lead by example. “When we survey people about why they are uncivil, 25 percent say it’s because their leaders are,” said Porath, who often hears workers say they don’t feel listened to or acknowledged.
Begin by assessing your own civility and behavior. How do you behave under pressure? How do you respond to stress? It’s important that workplace leaders model the behavior they wish to teach, and your own personal experience is an invaluable part of that learning process. Sharing your own shortcomings and how you addressed them is transparency at its finest. Employees want to know that you not only expect certain behavior from them, but that you expect the same from yourself.
“The thing that people want most is respect,” she said. “It’s more important than useful feedback, recognition and even growth opportunities.”
Hire nice. The negative impact of one toxic employee more than wipes out any gains he or she may make with even superstar performance, Porath said. When it comes to recruiting, “Do your homework.” Spending the time to find a civil employee is worth the investment of time and effort.
Ultimately, creating civil cultures requires work from the bottom up and the top down, but it’s worth the effort. “What I know from my research is that, when we have more-civil environments, we’re happier and healthier,” Porath said. “Let’s put an end to the incivility bug and start spreading civility.”
Adapted by Paul Papierski, Employee and Organizational Development Specialist, WL&D, UMASS Amherst from
- How to Master Civility in the Workplace, Jessica Miller-Merrell, June 19, 2018, SHRM.ORG
- The Case for Civility at Work, Christina Folz,, June 27, 2018, SHRM.ORG
