'Loud Laborers' Are Turning the Workplace Toxic. These Red Flags Reveal There's One on Your Team — and Maybe It's You. "Quiet quitters" had their moment — now all eyes are on their louder counterparts.
By Amanda Breen
Key Takeaways
- "Loud laborers" won't stop talking about their work and promoting themselves.
- A colleague who never seems to accomplish much yet goes on about all they're doing is likely a loud laborer.
- It sets up a workplace dynamic that can turn toxic if leadership continues to validate their behavior.
"Quiet quitters," the term for employees who prioritize work-life balance and only do the bare minimum work for which they're paid, had their time to shine — now the spotlight's on "loud laborers."
Coined by André Spicer, an organizational behavior professor and dean of Bayes Business School, "loud laborers" care more about publicizing their work and promoting themselves than they do the job itself, CNBC Make It reported.
Related: Employers Should Fear The Truth Behind Quiet Quitting. Here's Why.
Nicole Price, a leadership and workplace expert, told CNBC there are two big red flags that indicate you're dealing with a loudly laboring colleague: You never see much work accomplished, yet you hear "an awful lot" about what's being done.
Although a loud laborer's motivations might vary — perhaps they lack self-confidence or crave external rewards — the negative impact on the workplace is the same.
When "visibility" and "self-promotion" are valued more than achievements themselves, quieter employees can feel demotivated and sense "an atmosphere of competition rather than collaboration," Price said.
It sets up a team dynamic that can quickly turn toxic.
"[A toxic professional environment is] any workplace that makes you feel uncomfortable," Dr. Kristen Fuller, a medical reviewer specializing in mental health and addiction, told CNN. "Anything that makes you feel like you can't ask for the things you need and that you're not supported."
Related: If You Do Any of These 3 Things, You Might Be a Toxic Co-Worker
The solution? According to Price, it's up to leaders to stop validating loud laborers and start evaluating the work itself.
