"Chronic embitterment" is a term increasingly used to describe working relationships which have soured owing to a deep-rooted sense of grievance on the part of an individual employee, which often become increasingly hard to manage. It often manifests in the embittered individual believing that they have been unfairly treated and that this treatment has not been adequately addressed. In a work context, the alleged perpetrator tends to be a manager or more senior colleague within the team and one incident or a series of incidents can lead to the serious deterioration in the relationship between the individual and their employer more broadly. By way of example, an employee believes that they have been unfairly treated by a manager and submits a grievance to their employer. If their grievance and any subsequent appeal is not upheld, the individual concludes that their concerns have not been adequately addressed and maintains a long-term sense of unfairness which often leads to them interpreting any subsequent actions by their manager or the employer as further evidence of an attempt to undermine them or push them out of the organisation.
Chronically embittered employees frequently bring claims in the Employment Tribunal and, where they do so, these are often the most expensive and time-consuming claims for employers to litigate. This may be because these employees experience all settlement attempts as further evidence of the employer's wrongdoing rather than a purely commercial decision to limit costs and have unrealistic expectations in respect of their desired settlement figures which have little to no connection to the value of their potential legal claims.
Chronic embitterment also often ends up with the employee on long term sick leave. Although employers sometimes view this as a tactical move by the employee to delay internal processes, there may be genuine stress and anxiety on the employee's part arising from the dysfunctional working relationship. Alternatively, the breakdown in the employee's relationship with senior individuals within the business causes them such high levels of stress that they feel unable to continue working. Once the employee takes long term sick leave it can be very difficult to facilitate their return to work, particularly in a situation where they feel that the organisation is against them or is attempting to push them out. This places the employer in a situation where they either leave an employee on long term sick leave in anticipation that they may ultimately decide to leave the organisation or terminate the individual's employment. The decision to terminate carries significant legal risk if the individual has previously raised a grievance or complaint as they may allege that the decision to terminate is an act of victimisation.
So what can employers do to prevent employees becoming chronically embittered?
1. Early intervention
Chronic embitterment often takes root because tensions between employees and their managers have not been properly addressed at an early stage. Employers should promote an open culture in which managers and employees can request support from the HR Team with issues they are experiencing with either the staff they manage or their managers.
Informal mediation can be an effective way of addressing issues at an early stage and assist in improving working relationships by agreeing solutions in conjunction with HR. If early intervention does not act to resolve the underlying issues and the employer concludes that an effective working relationship is no longer possible, they should also consider whether they can make any changes to reporting lines. However, they should be mindful of making changes to reporting lines that inadvertently disadvantage the employee in terms of their responsibilities or career progression.
2. Consistent and fair application of policies and procedures
Employers should ensure that managers are trained on and applying company policies and procedures consistently and fairly to all staff. Breakdowns in working relationships may occur where an employee believes that they are being treated differently to their colleagues and feels that they are being unfairly singled out.
3. Clear and independent grievance and appeal process
Employers should clearly signpost how employees can raise informal complaints and grievances and ensure that all grievances and appeals are heard by an individual not involved in the events referenced or, in the case of an appeal, in the original grievance. This can be a key means of effectively resolving employee complaints and ensuring that employees feel heard and therefore do not feel the need to take further action.
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