‘Death by a thousand cuts’: For working women, microaggressions are leading to burnout

Toxic workplaces come in all shapes and sizes — and often, the problematic behaviors that make women feel uncomfortable at work go unrecognized by colleagues.

According to a recent study conducted by employee analytics platform Perceptyx, shouldering microaggressions has become commonplace for women workers. In fact, two-thirds of women report experiencing sexist behavior at least sometimes, and 25% report having experienced three or more offensive behaviors at work “frequently” or “always.”

“The more serious sexist incidents that really border on harassment, we have made a lot of progress on — people know how to report it and how to get it taken care of,” says Emily Killham, director of research and insights at Perceptyx. “But the biggest impact is the death by a thousand cuts, the microaggressions that add up to a very uncomfortable workplace without an obvious solution.”

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For women, those microaggressions — such as having their authority questioned, being overlooked for upward career opportunities, or having a colleague take credit for their work — are often overlooked or unseen completely by co-workers. One out of every five women report that they get interrupted or talked over in meetings frequently, according to Perceptyx, and more than twice that number say it happens “at least sometimes.”

Additionally, workplaces often assign tasks to its women workers that might not be related to their official position, but are rather associated with traditional gender roles, Killham says. For example, organizing team events or being asked to take notes during meetings — even in the presence of more junior workers who could handle the task — can create an environment that feels less than equitable.

“It’s creating burnout in the workplace for women because they are having to constantly prove their worth over and over again,” Killham says. “There’s an additional weight carried by women that perhaps the men in the workplace do not have to.”

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Increased representation in the C-suite and throughout departments isn’t necessarily the cure-all some hope for. Thirty-three percent of women say the most sexist thing they’ve heard at work has come from another woman, according to the study.

“Being surrounded by women isn’t helping if the toxic climate [already] exists,” Killham says. “This is an overarching climate where it's acceptable to interrupt somebody in a meeting, for people’s [expertise] to be questioned.”

The fix to problematic cultures will take buy-in across an organization, Killham says. In addition to corporate diversity and equity efforts, managers should implement a company-wide charter that clearly states that microaggressions are also to be taken seriously, empowering and encouraging all colleagues, including men, to speak up when they witness instances of disrespect.

“Create an environment and a structure where employees speak up even if they’re not the one [experiencing the microaggression],” she says. “They're a part of that team, too.”