Does the Company Have Trust Issues With Employees?

When bad employers are trying to recruit you, they're usually smart enough to avoid showing how little they care about employees. But with the right questions, you can gather enough clues to spot a company with a culture of fear. Before you accept an offer, find out how the company handles everyday workplace policies.

Review Company Policies

Once you receive a job offer, ask HR reps for an employee handbook, and review policies that aren't likely to come up in interviews. Beware of companies that keep basic policies confidential. Make it clear you simply want to avoid misunderstandings down the road, and be prepared to walk away from companies that refuse to hand over the information. In a culture of fear and distrust, leaders encourage silos and withhold information to control workers. If company leaders aren't transparent when recruiting you, don't expect them to suddenly become open and honest after you seal the deal.

Check for Outdated Rules

Chances are, some employers might not want you to get a close look at the company's employee handbook. Company leaders might make you wait a year to qualify for vacation time. Managers might require you to bring doctor's notes or death notices if you miss work due to illness or a funeral. Company heads might prohibit managers from giving references or may penalize you for absences that are reasonable in well-managed companies.
Employers who don't trust workers create a stifling culture of fear, where people are constantly worried about being scrutinized for having personal lives. Even if a hiring manager assures you that questionable rules aren't heavily enforced, you might still be held accountable for certain actions once you begin working for the firm.

Research Evaluation Practices

Distrustful employers rarely give truthful details about what it takes to move up the ranks. You're better offing talking to past employees or reading reviews on sites such as Glassdoor. Do some digging to find out about performance evaluations, learning and advancement opportunities, and internal hiring policies. For example, companies create a conflict of interest and empower petty managers when they require your direct superior to sign off on transfers or promotions.
Stack ranking also goes hand in hand with a culture of fear, forcing managers to group numbers of employees into fixed percentile ranges to drive competitiveness. Managers feel pressured to label the majority of employees as average or below average, regardless of how well they're actually performing. In short, ranking practices leads to resentful teams with low morale, and employees who value trust, collaboration and innovation move on to better pastures.

Ask About Flexible Work Options

Smart company leaders realize that skilled professionals can be trusted to do their jobs without constant monitoring or micromanaging. If your job duties don't require being onsite every day, think twice before joining a company with a culture of fear with rigid rules or mandatory work-tracking tools. Even if you don't need wiggle room right now, you could experience changes in your family or health status in the future.

A culture of fear quickly drains your passion and hinders your progress. Keep your eyes open for red flags during recruitment to avoid getting trapped in a trust-killing environment.

Photo courtesy of Ozer Killz at Flickr.com