We are not “like a family” at work

Many organisations these days boast about treating their employees like family. At first, this seems like a fruitful practice that encourages a close knit bond between employees and employers.

Since we spend a major part of our lives around our co-workers, it's only natural that we come to build close relationships with them. However, the line between professional and personal lives can often get blurry. If we casually compare our co-workers and bosses to family, our brains start associating certain familial traits with them that should not be normal in a transactional professional environment.

When we think about family, we envision selfless sacrifices, unshakeable loyalty, and meeting the needs of our family members while putting our own ones aside. As you can imagine, these familial notions can subconsciously bleed into the workplace if the prevalent language includes phrases such as "We're all family here." You may unwittingly start viewing your boss as a familial authority figure in your life rather than a professional mentor.

Why is this detrimental? It is much easier to rebel against traditional authority, yet significantly more difficult when the authority is your "family". You'll have a harder time advocating for yourself and become more likely to put up with unreasonable expectations from your employer, while inadvertently making yourself more vulnerable to burnout, exploitation and job dissatisfaction. You may even start overlooking certain things that bother you in the workplace and have trouble standing up for yourself.

The problem is not limited to just formal companies either. With the rise of youth organisations and clubs, many school and university students end up volunteering their time, energy and effort to them. While this can be a great opportunity for portfolio building, it also opens up the sinister gates of exploitation to people who have not yet learned to identify subtle yet damaging norms that create an environment of pressure and coercion.

You may be asked to work unreasonable hours and take on more than you can handle on your plate, all under the guise of a family culture where putting the organisation's needs above your own is the status quo. What's more is that it will seem counterintuitive to protest when the narrative is set in a familial context – you yourself will try to justify your own exploitation.

Does this mean that employers should draw lines in the sand and start being rude to their employees? Not at all. However, it is important to acknowledge that our relationship with our work is transactional no matter how passionate we are about our jobs.

We are improving our portfolios, getting monetary compensation, or both, in return for our efforts. Our workplaces should be respectful communities centred on shared values, rather than a pseudo-family that expects us to conform to a culture that asks us to give more than we signed up for.

Afia Ibnat thinks it's a tragedy that she eats dragon fruits, yet still remains a human. Tell her about more tragedies at afiaibnat09@gmail.com