Workplace is a very hostile environment, how to explain

[ShyGal78]

My boss is, to be blunt, a nasty person. As one new employee said you can tell she isn't nice in the interview. I merely got involved with the business cause I like the clientele. 

Anyway she's a petty spiteful woman (worse HR's her off site buddy) and I've put up with her nature for 2 years. It escalated recently. I obviously want out.

 

How do I explain that the environment she's fostered & the stress she's caused has affected my work ethic, caused problems, etc. I've got a doctor's note for stress leave & complaints in with a government watchdog / organization that handles misconduct by employers but that doesn't do me any good per se. 

What can I say in the cover letter - I was thinking deterring or discouraging workplace - that'll work in my favour. I was half tempted to put in I have government complaints it's just that bad. There's even a number of indeed work reviews that say her's is an awful department to work in. 

[Wiseman2]

Did you quit? Never burn bridges or worse trash a former employer to a new one.

In general bullying at work is horrible, however you are seeing your doctor and working on better stress management and better interpersonal coping skills.

Just move on professionally and never leave a trail of bad work history. Mentioning that you contacted all sorts of agencies to complain makes you, not them look bad.

[clia]

10 minutes ago, ShyGal78 said:

What can I say in the cover letter - I was thinking deterring or discouraging workplace - that'll work in my favour. I was half tempted to put in I have government complaints it's just that bad. There's even a number of indeed work reviews that say her's is an awful department to work in. 

Cover letter to who?  Is she discriminating against you in some way?  It's not illegal to be an a****** or a bad boss or even just an unpleasant person.  If you don't like her style, you are free to find a new job.  If you are talking about a cover letter for a new job, IMO you shouldn't mention anything about this.  Why would you bad mouth your previous boss in a cover letter for a new job?  If you need a reason for leaving, blandly state that it wasn't a good fit for you.      

[d0nnivain]

Your workplace is not a hostile work environment.  That is a legal term of art that describes systemic discrimination like the men hanging up centerfold pictures.   

Your boss may be hostile & nasty & unpleasant to work for but that is not illegal.  If you try to cite the fact that she isn't nice to you as a reason for your poor performance that won't go over well.  She will be seen as a good task master while you will come off as weak, crybaby who can't keep up. 

You won't change her or the office culture so don't try.  Get a new job.  When asked why you are leaving tell the new employer you want new exciting & different challenges.  If you get an exit interview say you are leaving for more money.  At that point after you have already committed to go you can possibly say that your boss's management style was ineffective & her nasty attitude drove you out.  Unless expensive high turn over costs the company money, your boss will remain free to manage as she likes.  

[mark clemson]

FWIW I agree with the suggestion to leave as soon as is reasonably possible. Bad bosses are a psychological distress and often the "checks and balances" in place to supposedly deal with them often do very little. If it was me, I would simply roll to a better situation.

[mortensorchid]

I know what you're going through - I was working at a company that was very similar.  It was a small ER physician company, I was in the customer service department with 16 or 17 women.  Much of it was racially motivated - the black women were all banded together against us "white bitches".  I had experience in my previous job and knew what to expect.  During the first month of the job, I was screamed at before everyone and anyone by the leader.  I remained stonefaced, kept calm and carried on.  My boss was a spineless wimp, however.  When the problematic ones were screaming at others (like me) she didn't discipline them.  The last straw was when one of them responded to a mass email I sent out to everyone in the department.  I asked if this guy John Doe calls back, please transfer him to my phone.  The Bitch responded by writing back to me "Don't send this crap to me again".  I ratted on her, went to my boss and HR about it, and they gave her a smack on the wrist.  I said "I'm getting out of here!".  Found another job and quit.  

Do the same. 

[Wiseman2]

On 8/4/2020 at 7:27 AM, ShyGal78 said:

 

On 8/4/2020 at 7:27 AM, ShyGal78 said:

My boss is, to be blunt, a nasty person. I obviously want out

 

Unfortunately toxic work places and work culture are common, however that doesn't Make it illegal.

The best hing you can do is get an excellent LinkedIn profile up with updated experience, head shot, and connections. Make sure it is positive, upbeat, lists your education, professional organisations and some interest groups you follow. Upload your resume and contact lists and connect to former coworkers, alumni, etc.

Make your profile public for the point of job hunting but also as search engine damage control, so that comes up on searches for your name (which employers always do). Remove and unwanted posts, pics,etc from social media and restrict your settings using the most private settings , since employers search that as well and look for red flags (racy pic, party pics, political rants, controversial content, etc)..

Start looking everyday for new jobs. Never trash a former workplace. People underestimate what employers' software  and IT contractors can dig up on them. Keep your digital footprint/rep clean. 

[ShyViolet]

I once had a job where the boss was a complete psycho.  I've had a lot of bad bosses in my time, but this was the craziest, nastiest boss I have ever had.  She treated everyone bad, definitely not just me.  I only worked at that job 7 months before I got out.  I knew I had to get out of that job as soon as possible and not waste any more time there, because I didn't want that job to have a substantial chunk of time on my resume.  I definitely wasn't going to use that job as a reference, and it's hard NOT to use a job as a reference if you were there a long time.

So I know how you feel.  You should never talk negatively about your past job to prospective employers, in interviews, and definitely not in a cover letter!  That would seem very weird and for a lot of prospective employers it would be an instant disqualification.  You're just supposed to make up some BS answer for changing jobs, like wanting a new challenge, wanting to find a place where you can utilize your talents, etc.