Expert Reveals the 5 Signs Your Workplace Is 'Toxic'

How do you know when it is time to leave a job? CEO, career coach and workplace expert Tiffany Uman has shared five signs that your workplace is toxic and that it might be time to leave.

"I continue to hear too many horror stories of incredible talent struggling with toxic workplaces and toxic bosses, and we need to do better," Uman told Newsweek. "I never want anyone to feel stuck in these situations but rather empowered to recognize the signs."

Analytics firm Gallup's 2022 State Of The Global Workplace report found that a majority of professionals feel unsatisfied at their workplaces, while toxic workplace phrases and management have been called out online by employees who have had enough.

But when is it time to cut ties and leave? In a video with more than 270,000 views on Instagram, Uman shared the signs it could be time to hand in your notice.

5 Signs It's Time To Leave Your Toxic Workplace

Your well-being is taking a hit

According to Uman, the first sign it might be time to cut ties is when your well-being starts to decline. Whether physically or mentally, when work starts to impact your health, she advised reassessing things.

You're not being respected

Feeling undervalued or disrespected by colleagues or superiors can have a serious impact on your well-being too.

"Another sign could be that they're constantly dismissing your ideas, throwing you under the bus, taking credit for your work," Uman said.

Your career goals aren't supported

Another sign of workplace toxicity is when your superiors are no longer supporting your career goals, and even preventing you from reaching them.

"Some signs can be that they're not advocating for you in the growth goals that you have, or worse, sabotaging them by preventing rightful exposure and visibility to you," Uman said.

You're being overworked

Another toxic workplace red flag Uman called out was working long hours without proper compensation or recognition.

Leadership is toxic

Finally, she highlighted the behavior of leadership. When they foster or enable toxic behavior, rather than addressing them, that's another sign to say goodbye, according to Uman.

While these signs of toxicity in the workplace may mean it's time to think about moving on, Uman said that it doesn't always mean you have to hand in your notice.

"I've helped countless clients turn around what they felt was a dead-end situation with their boss and dramatically improved their working relationship together, to the point that they secured their target promotion and raise in that company," she said.

Sometimes, moving to a different team can help, or addressing an issue with one particular manager or colleague.

"You can have an amazing talent who's simply being mismanaged under the wrong boss, but when they switch to a new team, they thrive," she said.

At other times, she said that toxic workplaces are best left behind. "If the issue is more widespread and enabled by leadership and HR, this is where looking for new opportunities externally could be the right move," said Uman.