How Unresolved Trauma Affects Your Workplace – And What Leaders Can Do About It

Did you know that 61% of employees have experienced at least one childhood adverse event and many carry its effects into the workplace?

The Hidden Cost of Unresolved Trauma In The Workplace

In 2023, 22% of worker absenteeism was due to mental health concerns. 55% of those who reported mental health to be the reason they needed time off clarified that this was a result of workload while 47% reported a perceived lack of managerial support as a contributing factor. Identifying trauma in an individual is not easy unless you are highly trained and you can understand the signs and symptoms before employees need to take time out. Leaders and managers are not equipped in this area but investing in trauma trained facilitators could result in savings from reduced absenteeism, employee turnover and overall well-being and longevity of client performance.

What Is Trauma And How Trauma Affects Employee Performance

T = Triggered

R = Repressed

A = Anger

U = Undervalued

M = Misjudgement

A = Anxiety

1.?Employees who are triggered often overreact to minor challenges leading to conflicts and underperformance.

2.?Repressed emotions in an employee can open the door for resentment, grudges resulting in an employee disengaging from their work environment.

3.?Unexpressed anger can cloud an employee’s judgement leading to creating a hostile work environment.

4.?Employees who were undervalued as children may hold the perception that they are not worthy of their position in the workplace and can perceive ‘rejection’ very personal.

5.?Trauma affects our perceptions of the outside world. In the workplace, an employee may have resistance to hierarchy and this misjudgement affects manager-employee interactions and co-operation.

6.?Anxiety affects how you sleep, think, feel and behave. If an employee is experiencing anxiety, they will struggle to retain information and will operate out of fear instead of creativity.

Trauma is created when an experience outside of ourselves directly affects how we think, feel and behave. Trauma holds us trapped in timelines that are still affecting us decades later. When most people think of trauma, they may hold the perception that trauma has to have been a big event but this is not true. Trauma mostly occurs behind closed doors in our family home. If parents are preoccupied due to living busy lives or are emotionally shut down due to their own trauma, the child in that environment will feel like something is wrong with ‘me’.

Signs of Trauma In The Workplace

·????? Triggered by minor experiences

·????? Overthinking

·????? Self-sabotage

·????? Procrastination

·????? Memory impairment

·????? Easily overwhelmed by decision making

·????? Overwhelmed by expectations

·????? Chronic fatigue

·????? Hypervigilance

·????? People pleasing

·????? Fear of expressing oneself

·????? Struggling to cooperate in teams

·????? A struggle to work independently

·????? Burnout

Why Is This Relevant To HR and Leaders?

Leaders and HR play a crucial role in the lives of the people they lead. If an employee presents any of the above, without a deeper understanding to the truth of the situation, HR and Leaders may not be able to identify the underlying cause of why their employees are struggling resulting in frustration and misjudgement. This can affect HR and leaders negatively as they do not have the tools to aid the employee who is presenting mental health issues.

The Cost of Ignoring Trauma in The Workplace

?·?????Increased absenteeism

·????? Reduced productivity

·????? Increased turnover

A study in 2023 found a 35% decrease in team performance due to unresolved trauma in employees costing companies thousands annually per employee.

?Solutions To Create A Trauma Aware Workplace

1.?Leaders Acknowledging And Facing Their Own Trauma: This offers leaders a fundamental understanding of how they are showing up in the workplace. Furthermore, leaders will be better equipped when facing challenges from employees who are struggling mentally. In human relationships, relatability is the foundation for success.

2.?Investing In Trauma-Aware Facilitators: To thrive in the workplace, we need to have a high level of resilience. Trauma educators can provide the necessary knowledge and tools to help leaders and employees resulting in deeper connections and relatability.

3.?Team Check-Ins: Practical ways to foster connection and support.

4.?Digital Tools: Online resources can scale trauma education.

Why This Matters To Your Business

When employees feel understood, they perform better and so does your business. This reduces employee absenteeism, improves team cohesion, morale and enhances leaders to perform more effectively.

Conclusion

Trauma in the workplace is a silent epidemic that is affecting everyone from the top-down. Addressing this area offers both employees and leaders an opportunity to work more effectively fostering resilience, productivity and a sense of belonging.

Have you noticed how unresolved trauma might be affecting your team? If so, I’d love to hear about how you are planning to address it or if you have any learnings etc.

Thank you,

James.

#Leadership #Mentalhealth #Workplacewellness #Traumahealing #Teams