The tension and division that define U.S. politics and society are also reflected in the workplace, giving rise to a record number of employee complaints. Despite the increasing volumes of official grievances filed by workers, a new study suggests many businesses still aren’t doing enough to protect employees or themselves from recurring on-the-job conflicts.
While the vast majority of U.S. companies have official or recommended methods of investigating employee complaints, those follow-ups often fail to address the underlying causes, which allows them to occur over and over. Worker case management company HR Acuity just issued its ninth annual employee relations benchmark study, and concluded its report by urging employers to take a much more proactive, systematic approach toward looking into staff mistreatment or misconduct claims. That advice is especially timely as the number of those cases rises to unprecedented levels.
According to the data analysis of 284 organizations and 8.7 million employees, claims of discrimination, harassment, and retaliation rose to 14.7 per 1,000 employees in 2024, its highest level ever. The report speculates that proliferating social and political clashes—and an increased readiness to pursue those in court—was a likely factor in increased official workplace complaints. But changes within U.S. places of work also played a role.
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