What does passive-aggressiveness look like?

In a nutshell, passive aggressiveness is an indirect way to express anger.

In the workplace, this replaces the outright display of conflict and confrontation. When it goes unchecked, it creates a toxic work environment. It can lead to gossip and make people feel they have to walk on eggshells around certain individuals. Other signs include:

• Forgetting or misplacing important documents
• Using email to avoid face-to-face conversations
• Resisting feedback for personal or professional improvement
• Having a “that’s not my job” attitude
• Skipping specific people in the chain of command, going above supervisors’ heads
• Humiliating co-workers in public
• Taking sick days during crucial meetings or projects to slow progress
• Withholding important information
• Doing less work when more is asked for

The untold truth is that passive-aggressive behaviors have a huge impact on an organization, despite the acts being subtle. The resistance and undermining chip away at morale, productivity, quality of work, and turnover. High performers usually quit, leaving toxic employees to continue to act out.

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