Making 1999 Gossip-Free in Your Firm

by Terri Olson

Gossip is particularly damaging in law firms, because not only does it contribute to the same problems it does elsewhere—paranoia, tension, bad relationships, and wasted time—but it's possible that client confidences will be part of this gossip. It's hard to control because, like bad driving, everyone deplores it yet most people are guilty of it at one time or another.

Therefore, the first rule for diminishing gossip is to recognize that everyone can fall under its spell. No one is exempt, although of course some people are by nature chattier, less kind, or less concerned over the validity of rumors than others. But gossip is a universal human weakness, not something limited to women, secretaries, or those with too much free time. So when you say, "I never gossip" (which everyone says), admit "except when I think it's a relevant issue; except when it's true and everyone knows it anyway; except when it's too good to waste; except when I'm telling someone who won't pass it on" or whichever excuse is applicable.

Since everyone admits office gossip is bad, yet most people spread rumors at one time or another, simply telling your employees "no gossiping" is rarely effective: everyone will agree and unfortunately continue as before. Hold a meeting or circulate a memo that provides concrete examples of what constitutes unacceptable gossip, such as:

  • Discussing anything related to a client matter within the firm to anyone who does not have a specific business need to know, or to anyone outside of the firm for any reason;
  • Talking about other employees' personal problems, including health, reasons for absences or marital difficulties;
  • Talking about other employees' work habits, work hours or abilities;
  • Talking about inter-employee relationships, whether romantic, good or bad;
  • Speculating about personnel issues, including hiring or firing plans, salaries, bonus distributions and evaluations.
When you tell employees that they shouldn't gossip about others, make sure that you have not removed their only outlet for complaints about co-workers. All staff should have a supervisor who can listen to and deal with personnel problems; the trick is to ensure that complaints are delivered only to that person and not to other sympathetic ears.

Because gossip is an outlet in stressful situations, it is frequently a symptom of other problems in the firm. It is rampant, for example, in organizations where little real information is shared with staff or associates. It is also very common in situations where employees feel that they are fundamentally powerless concerning major issues like salary, distribution of work and feedback on performance; gossip makes them feel involved and important. In addition, gossip is frequently a symptom of poor management. If tardiness, poor performance, or worse is allowed to continue unchecked, resentful employees will gossip about the offender, and the offender's friends will spread rumors in return. So provide your staff with less material for gossip by providing them with firm management and a suitable level of information about firm business. Involved and respected employees typically have fewer gossip problems because they already know what the facts are, and they are too busy to listen to anyone else's version.

Rumors and tales cannot spread without two participants: the one talking and the one listening. Most employees will attempt to defend themselves by indicating that they are only guilty of hearing gossip; they weren't spreading it. Nip this justification in the bud. If everyone in an office walks away the second someone else begins gossiping, the rumor dies right there. Make it clear to staff that, although it may seem harsh, someone who is known to while away the hours listening to someone else's chatter will be subject to the same discipline as the one who started the rumor. Refusing to listen to gossip need not come across as rudeness: the best response (albeit one that comes surprisingly slowly to most employees) is "I'm sorry, but I've got work to do."

As your mother probably told you long ago, the only way to make sure that nobody else finds out about something is to tell nobody else about it. Nobody, not even your secretary. Sometimes those with long-term secretaries feel that a sort of spousal privilege extends to all conversations held with that person. Bear in mind that your secretary may not feel the same way; although many are extraordinarily discreet, some are not. I once worked with a firm where partners were mystified about why confidential hiring information kept filtering down to the associates even though the partners had not said a word to them. It turned out that the associates were good friends with most of the partners' secretaries.

The anecdote also illustrates another one of the problems mentioned earlier: if the associates had been provided with a discreetly edited version of the facts up front, they would not have been hounding the secretaries for tidbits from the rumor mill.

In summary, remember the following tips to avoid gossip problems in your office:

  • Admit that at one time or another, we are all part of the problem and all need to be part of the solution;
  • Agree with your employees about what constitutes gossip, and why it is harmful;
  • Keep confidential information absolutely confidential, not shared with one or two "trustworthy" people;
  • The truth or falseness of the rumor being spread is irrelevant;
  • Whether you are spreading gossip or soaking it in is irrelevant;
  • Provide as much information and feedback to employees as possible; gossip does not flourish under these circumstances.
Teri Olson is the former Director of the Law Practice Management Program.

This article was originally published in the Georgia Bar Journal, February 1999, Vol. 4 No. 4