Every community supervision and corrections department strives to maintain high standards. Case file audits, grooming and dress codes, as well as professional and courteous conduct, help a department stand out among others. When a department upholds these standards, the confidence level of every employee is elevated.
Departments should maintain the same high standards when it comes to safety. Safety is a crucial topic of conversation for all community corrections departments. However, some departments fail to prioritize safety, often due to a negative work culture.
What is a negative work culture?
A negative work culture is not difficult to define: it is a work environment where a department’s officers and support staff are not respected, heard, or valued, leading to a lack of communication between administration and staff. This lack of communication results in low productivity, reduced teamwork, and, most importantly, a disregard for policies and procedures. Several indicators can help determine if your department has fallen prey to a negative work culture. Some of the signs to look for include:
- A high turnover rate
- Officers and support staff who do not enter and leave the department with smiles on their faces
- Newly hired officers and support staff are not referred by your department’s employees or ex-employees
- Low turnout at department functions
- Low interest in advancement within the department
All of these indicators point to a negative work attitude, which can lead to further issues and conflicts within your department.
Issues that create negative work cultures
Several issues can create a negative work culture. These include:
Lack of direction
An officer or support staff member lacking direction may develop a negative work attitude. This lack of direction, combined with a lack of leadership, allows negative attitudes to spread among the rest of the staff. In a work culture where little is expected, officers and support staff are likely to procrastinate and take shortcuts when completing their work assignments. The motivation to pay attention to detail is completely absent. This behavior, along with poor job performance, is like a pandemic waiting to spread — and unfortunately, it will.
Lack of enforcement
Working in a department that allows careless behavior by its officers and staff is both dangerous and discouraging. When policies and procedures are not enforced, it causes a lack of ethics that discourages workers from paying careful attention to their work assignments, duties and case file maintenance. The atmosphere in the department becomes so relaxed that careless behaviors — such as failing to follow safety protocols, dressing inappropriately and disregarding case file maintenance — are simply overlooked. Low levels of professionalism foster negative work attitudes that cause the entire department to suffer.
Safety infractions and a negative work culture go hand in hand. A work environment that is highly negative is bound to have high safety risks due to low officer participation. A negative work culture that allows low participation in safety policies is a ticking time bomb. Simple actions, such as borrowing passcodes or using unauthorized entrance access, could have major repercussions. This is where administrative action is most needed. As difficult as it may be to say, rules are worthless if they are not enforced.
Lack of confidence
When an officer or support staff member has low self-confidence, the department’s work culture develops a negative attitude that influences everything the department does. When a work culture is rich in ethics and committed to its professional values, it encourages officers and support staff by making them aware of their importance to the department. Unfortunately, when officers and support staff fail to feel recognized and lack self-confidence, they fail to thrive in their work environment. This is when morale begins to diminish.
Lack of core values
Morale diminishes in a work environment that lacks strong core values. Morale is shaped by a department’s work culture. Officers and support staff working in a department with a negative work culture suffer from a lack of motivation. Their attitudes are likely to be indifferent or even hostile as they deal with miscommunications from administration to supervisors to staff. This miscommunication creates frustration among the entire department, leading supervisors to overlook when officers and support staff fail to meet performance requirements. This lack of attention from supervisors can spawn rebellious and defiant attitudes among officers and support staff, further growing a negative work culture.
Creating change
When a department allows its officers and support staff to maintain low safety standards, it opens the door to a negative work culture. This rise in negativity is difficult to eliminate once it has taken hold. When employees are unmotivated and demoralized, they lose the ambition to complete their assignments and duties, creating the seeds of a negative work culture. Sadly, this is the starting point for safety risks, which can lead to real dangers.
Administration needs to take a proactive approach to dismantling the rise of a negative work culture. While some changes may be unattainable due to budget restrictions, there are still many areas that can be corrected, created and modified to foster a positive and encouraging work culture.
Consider the following:
- Display the mission statement: A department must promote its mission statement to both the public and its staff. Posting it in a visible place like the break room can drive passion and commitment among officers and support staff.
- Supervisors need to be visible: Supervisors should avoid being locked in their offices all day. Officers and support staff should know that supervisors are available and willing to engage with them regularly.
- Create an atmosphere of communication: The line of communication starts with simple actions, such as keeping the door open for officers and support staff to address concerns and questions without fear of ridicule.
- Provide training: Both in-office and out-of-office training are necessary. Departments should be willing to teach staff about procedures and policies with clear instructions and guidance. Supervisors need to be role models, leading by example, and fostering positive work relationships.
- Firm but fair supervision: Supervisors need to be firm but fair to all staff, treating all employees with respect and equality while upholding policies and procedures. This sets the standard and expectations.
- Recognition: Acknowledging years of service and professional growth is essential for staff morale. Simple actions, like recognition for years of service, can go a long way. Ceremonies for newly promoted officers can instill a sense of honor and integrity within the department. Administration needs to ensure staff knows they are valued and essential to achieving the department’s mission.
- Unity through camaraderie: Something as simple as having a group break weekly or monthly encourages a comfortable and communicative workplace environment. The positive vibes among staff can be seen instantly, and the effects are remarkable.
The causes of toxicity and hostility in the workplace are generally linked to negative attitudes regarding management procedures. The negative work culture that stems from these attitudes opens the door to lax safety and security measures, which could have catastrophic consequences for any department.
While finding a fix may be easy, creating change and transforming the workplace culture can be difficult if administration does not work as a team to identify problems and create solutions. Although this information and these suggestions are just the tip of the iceberg, they can inspire change to keep your department safe. Being reactive means identifying and fixing a problem; being proactive means preventing a problem before it arises. Let us all be proactive in addressing negative work culture because, in the end, it will help save lives.
References
Murphy M. How to Deal with a Negative Work Environment. Collins McNicholas Recruitment & HR Services Group.
Stiefvater S. 7 Tips for Dealing with a Toxic Work Environment. PureWow, May 20, 2021.
Tynan L. Signs You’re in a Toxic Work Environment & How to Handle It. TopResume.
