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.