There's an office gossip in every corporation. The only worker who thinks gardening means tending the office grapevine. The person who knows so much you'd swear s/he is bugging your office. Unquestionably, office gossip can be a thorn in management's side. Chronic gossip mongers can undermine morale, weaken authority, and create unnecessary stress and tension. If an employee is spreading malicious or consistently false rumors, his or her behavior needs to be dealt with just like any other company problem. However, don't think sitting an employee down and reading him or her "riot act" will put an end to the office grapevine. If you work in a small office, it can be extremely easy to get caught up in jealousy or speculation- all of which leads to whispering, snickering and messages back and forth about what is going on with whom and who is getting paid more than someone else. The negative side to gossip is that it can weaken company morale and eventually lead to the downfall of a company based on lack of motivation, intimidation or even self criticism because you know and/or think that others are judging you. Perhaps the best way to overcome gossip in the office is for the manager to keep an open line of communications with his workers. This means the manager must be viewed as approachable and trustworthy by the staff. In addition to an open door policy, managers should hold routine meetings and issue memos on what is going on. This can be done through such things as bulletins, e-mail or a private departmental discussion group. But if the manager maintains a closed-door policy, rumors will inevitably circulate. If rumor control is left unchecked, it can turn particularly nasty. No doubt we have all met people who are past masters at spreading rumors for political maneuvering.
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