Gossiping In the Workplace Can Be Harmful

Gossiping is something that almost everyone has heard about. It is likely that most people have been the subject of someone else’s gossip or have engaged in gossip themselves. According to the Merriam-Webster online dictionary (2014), gossip is defined as information about the behavior and personal lives of other people. There is no one reason for gossiping. Some people do it for entertainment. Others do it for passing time. Many others gossip for increasing their social ability. Many people gossip to reduce their anxiety about the unknown. Since information gives power and authority, many people gossip to enhance their social as well as individual power. Gossip can be harmful to the gossiper or the person being gossiped about. Although gossip in the workplace can be used for socializing, it can also be very harmful to the employees and the employer. Gossiping in the workplace can lead to employees feeling isolated, an atmosphere of lack of respect, and lower productivity.
When people are gossiping, the persons who do not take part in the gossip can feel isolated. The isolated persons can be emotionally affected by the lack of camaraderie with the other people at the workplace. They may find themselves eating their lunches alone, which can make them feel even more isolated and can lower their self-esteem. They can feel that they cannot trust their fellow gossiping colleagues and may find it difficult to speak up about their ideas in group meetings for fear of being talked about. Furthermore, when they have to work with the gossipers, as part of a team, they may think that they will be talked about and made fun of by the gossipers. They may not be able to contribute to the team project. They could then be s...

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...ost a company a large amount of money.
It can be seen that gossip can be very harmful in the workplace. It isolates people. Colleagues do not feel respected. Colleagues do not trust each other. Employers can lose money and employees through gossip. Even though gossip can be used for positive reasons, it has a negative side. It would be in the best interest of an employer to be aware of how his or her employees are relating to each other. Perhaps the job of watching out for gossiping could be placed in the hands of team leaders or supervisors. Since they can also engage in gossip, someone also needs to be watching the watchers. The best prevention to avoid gossip is to talk to each other instead of about each other as gossiping can lead to serious psycho-social problems which hamper relationships. So, prevention is the key to avoiding gossiping.