Toxic: A Guide to Rebuilding Respect and Tolerance in a Hostile Workplace

British business psychologist Lewis (Difficult Conversations) offers an old-fashioned look at contemporary social challenges within workplaces. Lewis contends that over the past 30 years, “workplaces have become hotbeds of conflict—toxic environments littered with eggshells.” This is a time of unprecedented change, he argues, and leaders don’t yet have the skills to navigate it. Workers, meanwhile, are left to seek out ways to handle it on their own, “which might include sick days, looking for an internal move, or leaving the company entirely.” Illustrated with stories from his own work as a mediator, Lewis’s advice for avoiding toxicity includes countering a lack of trust via teamwork, dealing with anxiety and stress by asking colleagues or friends for help, and offering technology-free days to employees to prevent overload. When suggesting remedies, his ideas are often delivered as plodding lists of bullet points, and most of the time they boil down to “just talk it through.” The dry presentation and British point of view (American readers may get tripped up, for example, by the employee who takes six months of paid sick leave because of workplace tension) make this a tough sell in an overcrowded market. Readers can give this one a pass. (Apr.)