© jobs.lu
In a recent survey conducted by jobs.lu, almost one in five employees stated that they have sought help out of fear for their mental health because of a poor relationship with their manager.
One in five employees also actively try to avoid their manager outside the workplace. 470 employees and managers participated in this survey conducted by the online recruitment platform jobs.lu on 13 August 2021.
The results show the consequences a toxic relationship between an employee and their manager can have. This can go beyond nightmares, with one in five employees reporting that they had to seek therapy, according to Hanna Arnoldy from jobs.lu. In order to avoid the emergence of such psycho-social problems, teams must be managed well, and managers should receive special training. One third of the managers who participated in the survey stated that they have never received any training.
To improve relations, feedback in both directions is also important, according to jobs.lu. This naturally depends on the openness of the manager, but Arnoldy stresses that a manager should be willing to accept constructive feedback about their leadership style.
As part of the survey, jobs.lu asked employees to assess the level of competence of their manager, while managers were asked to assess themselves. The findings reveal a significant difference in assessment.
The average score given by employees to their manager is 5.9/10. Managers, on the other hand, rate their level of competence at 8.7/10.
Finally, the survey sought to identify what employees consider to be inappropriate managerial behaviour. Respondents say they are mainly annoyed by:
- informal threats by a manager (58%)
- disrespectful behaviour towards other employees behind their back (47%)
- criticising colleagues in public (47%).
Finally, when asked about their social relationship with their manager, 40% of respondents stress the importance of a strict separation between work and private life. 19% of respondents stated that they actively try to avoid their manager outside the workplace.