Dive Brief:

• Managerial disrespect for lower-level workers is a top concern that can make frontline employees think about quitting, even if they like their jobs, according to more than half of 1,000 survey respondents in a new Harris Poll for Yoh, a global talent and outsourcing firm. Managers who break promises (46%), over-work employees (42%) and have unrealistic expectations of them (42%) are the next top reasons that drive workers to quit. Poor management can trump good benefits, perks and other workplace advantages.
• Other negative managerial behavior that drives workers to quit include playing favorites; gossiping about other workers; being overly critical; micromanaging workers; and not listening when workers voice their opinions.
• Women (59%) are more likely than men (48%) to say that disrespect will make them leave their jobs. And generally, managers who have limited knowledge (30%), offer inadequate performance feedback (24%), can't effectively help workers develop their skills (23%) and are uninvolved in daily interactions (18%) can cause workers to consider leaving.

​Dive Insight:

The old saying, while shown in new light in the modern workplace, still holds some truth: Employees really might quit a bad boss. HR can make sure managers know what's important through training that counters poor boss behaviors, such as micromanaging, showing favoritism, giving infrequent feedback, offering excessive criticism, stealing employees' ideas, over-working subordinates and being overtly disrespectful.

Workplace polls indicate that nothing appears to agitate employees more than micromanaging. Paying favorites, having unclear goals for workers and bad-mouthing colleagues were also cited as top managerial problems in a survey from The Predictive Index. Employees have also said that their managers aren't doing enough to help them develop skills.

A recently released survey from Monster showed that 3 in 4 employees have had a toxic boss. Poor management at such a high rate is an urgent call for better trained managers. Organizations must give managers the tools they need to lead effectively. A boss' task is to manage through motivation with a focus on career development. Even managers admit that they often lack the training they need to lead; 59% of managers with one to two employees in a West Monroe Partners study said they had no training.

In the current labor market, with more job openings than workers to fill them and a historically low unemployment rate that could dip even lower in 2019, employers can't risk allowing poorly trained managers or toxic bosses to drive out workers.