'Watch people's body language, particularly around management': 30+ red flags and questions to ask to avoid toxic work environments

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Ben Weiss • Writer and Editor
Dec 1, 2023 8:00 AM EST

People often forget that in any job search, you are interviewing them as much as they are interviewing you. That means that no matter what your level of desperation is, always keep in mind that you still have the power of choice during your interview and search process. That means that you should feel empowered to ask questions and not just the basic fundamentals like salary and benefits. You should feel entitled to ask your interviewer about their experience at the company, what their concerns are, what consistent problems get brought up to management, and how management addresses those problems. Furthermore, when you find yourself asking those questions, be sure to not just pay attention to whatever potential stock answer you're receiving. Pay attention to body language and hesitations. Pay attention to any element of surprise or confusion they might be exhibiting. It's all important and useful as you make your own decisions.

These tips and tricks were compiled from this r/AskReddit thread. Keep scrolling below for the full list of workplace red flags and questions to keep in mind during the interview process as you embark on your next job search. For more content like this, check out this compilation of dramatic workplace secrets.

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  • 01
    biguglydoofus Check out the restroom and break room. These areas can be symbolic of how they treat their employees. bright-knight I always ask at the end of an interview, "do you like working here?". Regardless of their answer, I focus on body language to see if they're being honest Mallouwed "we are like a family here". Run. Run far.
    via Israel Andrade
  • 02
    r/AskReddit. Posted by u/OverripeSirloin What red flags do you look for when applying/interviewing for a job to avoid hostile or toxic work environments?
    via u/OverripeSirloin
  • 03
    Zannishi_Hoshor. I always ask the interviewer "if you could change one thing about working here, what would it be?" They usually say something surprisingly honest, and if it's a dealbreaker, I'm out.
    via u/OverripeSirloin
  • 04
    Mallouwed "we are like a family here". Run. Run far.
    via u/OverripeSirloin
  • 05
    ChompyTM My favourite question to ask in interviews is how long employees tend to stay at the company. One time the interviewers just looked at each other a little scared and shied away from a direct answer, needless to say I did not accept that job.
    via u/OverripeSirloin
  • 06
    Casuallybrowsingcdn. If there is lots of turnover. I also scrutinize the manager. I find most people quit the manager and not the job.
    via u/OverripeSirloin
  • 07
    ▸ [deleted] Company reviews are poor on sites like Glassdoor.
    via u/OverripeSirloin
  • 08
    NotAMazda High turnover rate
    via u/OverripeSirloin
  • 09
    younghomunculus. If you see a lot of signs and reminders posted everywhere it means they micromanage. I never realized this until someone pointed it out. Then I noticed the SIX letter sized notices about the same thing in the same spot and realized it's completely true.
    via u/OverripeSirloin
  • 10
    biguglydoofus Check out the restroom and break room. These areas can be symbolic of how they treat their employees.
    via u/OverripeSirloin
  • 11
    Liquidhelix136. Ask who (in the position you're applying for) has been at the company the longest, and then dig deeper into how many people have been there for similar lengths of time? Ask what are some complaints about the job management consistently hears. Lastly, ask them what THEY love about the job/company.
    via u/OverripeSirloin
  • 12
    These questions in an interview can give mega good insight into the turnover rate, what problems you can expect to face working at that company and if management has a track record of fixing/ignoring those complaints and if the company is a good environment to be in. That last question can REALLY trip an interview up if they are on the way out the door / don't like their job.
    via u/OverripeSirloin
  • 13
    IgnoringHisAge. "Work hard, play hard" has been mentioned, but I'm going to top-level comment it again. This little slogan almost always means that management/ownership has totally unrealistic expectations of their people (and probably of themselves), and therefore healthy work/life balance is frowned upon as a weakness... and as a result of all of these things, people compensate with chemical dependency and other destructive lifestyle choices.
    via u/OverripeSirloin
  • 14
    bright-knight I always ask at the end of an interview, "do you like working here?". Regardless of their answer, I focus on body language to see if they're being honest
    via u/OverripeSirloin
  • 15
    DarthContinent Watch people's body language, particularly around management types. If people look fearful or wary that could indicate their current and your eventual boss is a micromanaging control freak.
    via u/OverripeSirloin
  • 16
    pulpexploder. No matter how you ask the questions, you need to know two things: what is the company's culture, and what are the team's processes. I asked a manager I was interviewing with once what the culture was. He was completely caught off-guard and said, "I don't know, laid back, I guess?" I had a friend working on the team who had started recently.
    via u/OverripeSirloin
  • 17
    Within a few months, he and everyone on the team were miserable. Culture doesn't happen on accident. A good manager is doing things to improve culture and they have something specific in mind; poor managers treat employees as disposable resources and put no effort into making it an enjoyable place to work.
    via u/OverripeSirloin
  • 18
    Similarly, find out what you can about how the team does things. The worst job I ever had was one where the manager had absolutely no processes. We never knew what we were doing, we wasted ridiculous hours because we didn't know what we were building, and nothing ever got done correctly.
    via u/OverripeSirloin
  • 19
    Job responsibilities shifted month by month and the manager felt threatened whenever anyone proposed something to let us work more efficiently. Good processes protect you, and if the manager can't explain them, they don't exist.
    via u/OverripeSirloin
  • 20
    MasteringTheFlames. Notice how the low level workers react to seeing their boss. Do coworkers who were talking just a moment ago suddenly go silent when the boss walks in, like the manager is a control freak who only thinks of fun as inefficient work? Or do the manager and grunt workers greet each other, and actually seem to enjoy each other's company?
    via u/OverripeSirloin
  • 21
    ravanor77. Red Flag - When they talk about their culture or that they are very picky who they hire... RUN! All this means is they beat their employees into submission and never want your opinion ore feedback about anything, its another way of saying "do everything our way or else". Culture is a red flag.
    via u/OverripeSirloin
  • 22
    Always ask for a tour of the office, you will be astounded how many jobs you will not want once you see that you will be sitting in the middle of a hall way with everyone walking by you and an extremely loud employee sitting next to you. Or you see the looks on peoples face that are trying to tell you to run. Remember you are the new person, you will get the desk no one wants and you will have to be near the person no one wants to be near.
    via u/OverripeSirloin
  • 23
    Yes all this does sound negative but, the position is open for a reason and 99 out of 100 times the reason is someone couldn't take the either left or changed anymore and departments and that's why you are there today.
    via u/OverripeSirloin
  • 24
    Mainly the thing to do is have very thick skin, but know you will not retire from that job and get what you can out of it. When you are fed up you leave and let the next person suffer the pain of long term employees who don't want to do anything different or ever change and bad micro management that the company supports.
    via u/OverripeSirloin
  • 25
    Remember this, anyone can manage but very few can lead. If the workplace was good or the management was good the job would not be open because no one would leave. People don't quit their jobs, they quit their management.
    via u/OverripeSirloin
  • 26
    Just decide what level of you are not going to put up with and do the job until that line is met and remember that line WILL BE MET. Don't compromise what you are willing to put up with as you will absolutely hate yourself later in life for wasting your precious time in the world on idiots.
    via u/OverripeSirloin
  • 27
    TaxCollectorSheep. None of these are deal-breakers, but: If they're willing to hire me on the spot I always worry about turnover and if they're desperate.
    via u/OverripeSirloin
  • 28
    I sometimes look at the cars in the parking lot. Maybe shallow, but if everybody drives beaters, then the pay-scale may be up for scrutiny. Do they pay anybody at the company minimum wage? Nothing screams "I pay all of you too little" more than paying some poor 16-year-old $7.25.
    via u/OverripeSirloin
  • 29
    I also like to ask, "could you connect me with somebody who is in the position I'm looking to fill?" So I can get a clear idea of the day-to-day work. edit: speling
    via u/OverripeSirloin
  • 30
    [deleted] • "Be your own bosss" • In a sales work if you gotta calculate your salary based on overcomplicated details, there is a "tier" or "point" system that you gotta check and re check to understand how they will pay you per sale weekly/monthly and not a straight "you sell x then your comission is z". Run away, you will never reach the good paying tiers/required points.
    via u/OverripeSirloin
  • 31
    HatcheeMalatchee I've only been fired once, by the world's most toxic manboy boss I've ever met -- basically for refusing to lick his boots and later, I found out, to cover up his own malfeasance. So here's my list of toxic red flags that in retrospect I should have paid more attention to: 1. If you are employed by one person with "a dotted line" to others, and those others can't bother to show up on time and give the conversation their undivided attention, RUN.
    via u/OverripeSirloin
  • 32
    2. Do any of these people tell aggressively pushy jokes about golf, college football, or fraternities, like they're still in junior high, and then laugh at themselves? Run. 3. Do they joke about other people's feelings or concerns? They'll do the same with yours. RUN DON'T WALK.
    via u/OverripeSirloin
  • 33
    Abba_Fiskbullar. Ask the interviewer how they feel about the culture and direction the company is headed. If they equivocate, or have to waffle around for an answer, it's a bad sign.
    via u/OverripeSirloin
  • 34
    bustybaddie The way managers/interviewers communicate with you. Body language also speaks volume
    via u/OverripeSirloin

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toxic-workplace job work askreddit red flags reddit thread Reddit company job interview interview workplace stories toxic-work-environment
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