The Basis of Workplace Gossip - Essay Example

GOSSIP IN THE WORKPLACE Jennifer Chason Submitted This paper discusses the basis of workplace gossip which has left the employers stranded and is always willing to find out the solution to this problem. Workplace gossips create an impression that the office folks have nothing to do and all they indulge in is social discussions and meaningless chit-chat, which just brings in laughter and nothing else. I have tried my utmost to pinpoint the areas where workplace gossips could leave an indelible negative impression on the employers and the competing organizations. I have also tried my best to provide a countering stance in the wake of such a situation within the domains of a workplace. Gossip in the Workplace To start with, workplace gossip can have lasting effects and impressions. The workers and employees are best advised to abstain from it so that these gossip conversations do not have lasting effects in the long term. Workplace gossips can turn pretty ugly at times since the informal ‘grapevine’ network present within an organization spreads very quickly and no one can actually stop rumors as well as true stories from being shared openly. Continuing further, the causes of workplace gossips are that the small conversations which are held between two employees are spread to other workers working within the organization if the conversation is overheard by another individual who also works in that organization. (Heller, 1998) It is also possible that one of these two people might tell others who would further tell the remaining staff that is working within the organization and hence the gossip can turn really nasty at the end. With more and more informal gossips in the workplace, it is suggested that the employees are not concentrating properly on their assigned tasks and the bosses take particular note of this fact. They mention these points to the employees who like to gossip a lot and also warn them from time to time so that the gossip within the workplace is reduced drastically. The effects of this workplace gossip are that the employees have a bad image within the organization and they are not taken in high esteem. They are also told of concentrating on their own duties rather than wasting their times on having useless gossips all the time. (Drumheller, 2006) Workplace gossips also mean that the employees have lost a lot of interest in their work and they do not find their job challenging enough. The employers should provide comfort to these types of employees by changing their job nature or making their job focus a bit more different. They can also be delegated work in a different manner so that they feel at ease with the working methods. It is a fact that the employers generally do not like the employees who gossip a lot and are always suggesting some ways as to how they can control this problem. They find different means and ways through which workplace gossip could be reduced. It is a fact that employees are also humans and they need to talk to each other because after all a workplace is essentially not a jail but the restroom is one such place where they can hold their conversations. (Hodson, 2001) Even in lunch time they can chat over in an informal manner but when they are at their desk and doing work then that means work is everything and gossip holds no place within the office boundaries. Employees must bear in mind that their managers and seniors are always on the look-out for the subordinates who waste their time gossiping and this is documented at the time of their appraisals, which are usually held once a year. This is an important measure of giving the employees bonuses and salary raise and thus only those employees make some sort of mark here, in the positive sense who have always put work before gossip and have never swapped the two between each other. Workplace gossips also create scenarios in which some section of the minority within the office environment is constantly ridiculed and thus this whole situation makes for quite a bizarre happening, more so when the top management is not aware of the exact basis of the wrongdoings that are occurring within the office place. (Jones, 2000) This essentially mars the fabric of an organization and it promotes informal grapevine to spread like jungle fire. No one is held accountable and hence a sense of animosity and hatred is born and bred in the office environment between different employees and co-workers. What workplace gossips do in essence is to spread rumors about the company’s undertakings, employees’ personal lives and so on and thus it is in the best interest of one and all within the office environment if rumor control mechanisms are set in place. This would mean proper investigations are held once such a scenario is reported and the guilty party be taken to task as this person has destroyed the basis of sanctity and mutual respect that people relate with of organizations. (Kimmel, 2004) In the conclusion, it is important here to state that having a meaningless gossip in the workplace can go against the people who are having this gossip. They must understand that the effects of these informal gossips are destructive for their own stay at the organization and they would not be able to gain any advantage out of this in any way. The employees must concentrate on their work and stick to their gossip sessions when they are done with work or when they are having their supper. This is for their own betterment so that their workplace environment remains calm and smooth and there are no problems for anyone at all. (Peyton, 2003) All said and done, it is for the betterment of the workplace regimes to have better approaches in place as concerns to the gossiping habits, which at the end of the day is an inherent characteristic of every employee’s personality. However this does not distract the top management to enact the right policies which bolster growth and prosperity from all angles related with interpersonal skills of the employees and co-workers. References Heller, Frank. (1998). Organizational Participation: Myth and Reality. Oxford University Press Drumheller, Kristina. (2006). Sensemaking and Emotions in Organizations: Accounting for Emotions in a Rational(ized) Context. Communication Studies, Vol. 57 Hodson, Randy. (2001). Dignity at Work. Cambridge University Press Jones, Anderson. (2000). Sleeping with Gossip. The Advocate, 5 December Kimmel, Allan. (2004). Rumors and Rumor Control: A Managers Guide to Understanding and Combating Rumors. Lawrence Erlbaum Associates Peyton, Pauline. (2003). Dignity at Work: Eliminate Bullying and Create a Positive Working Environment. Routledge Word Count: 1,037 Read More