Abstract
Workplace differences can generate intense conflict and emotional pain for employees - feelings like anger, frustration, stress, and disappointment. Some types of conflicts are caused by one-time events such as a merger or acquisition, the sudden loss of a senior leader and, most recently, worries about COVID-19-related issues connected to mandatory vaccinations, mask wearing, and return to work policies (Smith, 2021). Other sources of conflict tend to be more chronic, created by unsustainable workloads, bad managers, or reward and promotion systems that cause destructive internal competition. Toxic leaders who create an unfair work environment or who engage in frequent bullying and sexual harassment are another significant source of employee stress and workplace conflict (WBI 2021 US Workplace Bullying Study, 2021; Daniel, 2021; Society for Human Resource Management, 2019; Workhuman, 2019; Daniel & Metcalf, 2016). The unintended consequence of these problems is the creation of intense anxiety (and sometimes even paralyzing fear) among employees that causes them to lose their energy, focus, and creativity.
