Civility in America VII: The State of Civility
The latest edition of Civility in America, an annual poll conducted by Weber Shandwick and Powell Tate, with KRC Research, finds that with uncivil behavior on the rise, Americans are finding that one place that can provide refuge from society’s increasingly pervasive and offensive behavior and language is the workplace.
The survey found 86 percent of employees say their current place of employment is civil and nearly two-thirds (63 percent) agree that people are more civil at work than outside of work. Nearly three-quarters of those employed with co-workers (73 percent) say the people they work with are always or usually civil to other people.
While incivility does exist in the workplace, the costs to the employer can be significant. In addition to turnover, consequences of workplace incivility include loss of job morale, less collaboration and reduced work quality.
Civility in America VII also identifies a significant incivility problem that leads to intimidation and threats, violent behavior, cyberbullying and harassment. A record high rate of Americans (75 percent) agree incivility in America has risen to crisis levels. Over half of Americans (56 percent) expect civility in America to worsen over the next few years. Those who predict a more uncivil future fault several parties, but primarily focus their blame on politicians (75 percent), the Internet/social media (69 percent) and the news media (59 percent).
Click here to read the full report and see below for the infographic.