Two-thirds say leaders know and either do nothing or take part, and nearly 9 in 10 remain severely affected 2+ years after leaving

NEW YORK, Oct. 8, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- The belief that leaders are unaware of toxic work environments is largely a myth, according to the Toxic Workplace Report 2026, a study of 8,478 workers by Corporate Criminologist Jennifer Brick. Just 4% of workers in toxic workplaces said leadership was unaware. Two-thirds (67%) said leaders knew and either did nothing (27.4%) or participated directly (39.2%).

"Toxic work culture is created and enabled at the top," said Brick. "In criminology, the people with the authority to stop harm are called capable guardians. Leaders are in that position, but the data shows they're either ineffective, unwilling, or complicit."

Other findings:

• When leaders are complicit, speaking up is a bigger risk. Reporting was nearly 3x as likely to make things significantly worse when workers said leadership was complicit (33% vs. 12%).

• Leaving ends the exposure, not the damage. Among workers 2+ years out of a toxic job, 88% still had severe symptoms. Anxiety and distrust eased over time, but hypervigilance and fear of future toxic work experiences increased.

• Bad bosses don't push you out. A foreclosed future does. The two strongest predictors of readiness to leave were how workers felt imagining themselves in the job a year from now and how they felt about their career trajectory. Both outweighed how workers were treated.

Read the full report for more insights, including the most reliable toxic work environment sign at ToxicWorkplaceReport.com

Brick is available for interviews.

Methodology

The report draws on 8,478 responses, including 543 voluntary first-person accounts, from self-selected participants in online assessments. Analyses included factor, cluster, regression, and moderation analyses, with 95% Wilson confidence intervals.

About Jennifer Brick

Jennifer Brick is a criminologist (B.A., Criminology, Simon Fraser University), former startup executive, and creator of Career Glow Up. She has amassed a following of 475,000 people across social media exploring modern work culture and power dynamics at work.

About Capdeca Solutions, LLC

Capdeca Solutions provides research-backed insights and frameworks to address workplace deviance and repair corporate culture. Founded by Jennifer Brick, it bridges empirical workplace data with practical tactics for workers and organizational leaders.

Media Contact
Jennifer Brick
info@capdecasolutions.com

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