Employees are weaponizing communication tools to get colleagues in trouble—and it’s a huge HR oversight

The use of digital communication, like email and instant messaging, has grown exponentially since the pandemic. Yet companies haven’t adequately addressed how the misuse of such tools can contribute to toxic work cultures.

A recent survey of more than 1,000 U.S. professionals from email marketing firm Emailtooltester uncovered poor workplace communication conduct that most frustrates workers. Some of the grievances cited by surveyed individuals could be innocent faux pas, such as accidentally emailing everyone at the company, using emojis, or misspelling names. But other behaviors that workers admitted to, like intentionally looping in supervisors to get colleagues in trouble, highlight an oversight on establishing best practices and guidelines for virtual workplace communication.    

One-fifth of surveyed employees admit to complaining about a manager or colleague to a work friend via email over the last 12 months. Around 16.8% of respondents say they forwarded an email chain deliberately to get a colleague in hot water, and 24.2% copied or blind copied someone’s manager on an email for the same purposes. 

Robert Brandl, the founder of Emailtooltester, says it may be helpful to remind employees to use common sense when sending work-based communications, like not saying anything over work email that they wouldn’t want to be repeated or shared.

Companies should also establish communication guidelines to dissuade employees from weaponizing these emails in the first place.

“When it comes to understanding the different channels that you have available in the workplace, it’s important to have a broader strategy for what channels [are] available to employees and how they use them,” says Chris Lee, vice president of employee experience and communication at management consulting firm Gallagher. According to Gallagher’s State of the Sector report for internal communication and employee experience, only 31% of employers reported having a framework for internal communication channels. Of enterprise organizations employing 10,000 or more workers, 49% had such a framework.

“Having a framework is an important opportunity, especially when you think about a digital environment,” Lee says. “All communication can be shared not just internally but also externally, which obviously can have a negative impact on your brand and your reputation.”

Companies should establish formal policies on the appropriate use of communication channels. While it can feel draconian to set such standards, Lee says it’s helpful for employers to point to formal guidance in heated situations and understand the consequences of abusive communication practices.

Managers should also model these best practices. For example, if someone loops in a leader or forwards an email to get a colleague in trouble, managers should remind the informant of more appropriate ways to address problems at work.

“Good leaders would be able to identify and manage problematic behaviors that can spread very quickly like cancer throughout an organization,” says Lee.

Paige McGlauflin
paige.mcglauflin@fortune.com
@paidion

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