Quoting that famous cartoon philosopher, Pogo, “We have met the enemy…and he is us.” When it comes to workplace culture, there has been a marked increase in rudeness and incivility over the past two decades. Blame it on a number of factors. Our increasingly polarized political climate, the pandemic and resulting years of social isolation, the digital blindness created by our social media platforms, and stress from overwork have all converged with other forces to create work environments that can be uncivil at best and, at worst, downright toxic.

Quoting that famous cartoon philosopher, Pogo, “We have met the enemy…and he is us.” When it comes to workplace culture, there has been a marked increase in rudeness and incivility over the past two decades. Blame it on a number of factors. Our increasingly polarized political climate, the pandemic and resulting years of social isolation, the digital blindness created by our social media platforms, and stress from overwork have all converged with other forces to create work environments that can be uncivil at best and, at worst, downright toxic.