Trauma in the Workplace

To start with, trauma is defined as “Any disturbing experience that results in significant fear, helplessness, dissociation, confusion, or other disruptive feelings intense enough to have a long-lasting negative effect on a person’s attitudes, behavior, and other aspects of functioning” (American Psychological Association [APA], n.d.).

Trauma goes beyond an event that bothers you for a few hours and then you forget, or a grudge you hold. It can physically alter your brain (Laricchiuta et al., 2023). It is also associated with a feeling of having no control (Borgueta, 2025).
Corporate trauma is trauma resulting from the workplace (Techpreneurship Academy, 2025). They go on to say that it “happens when psychological safety is repeatedly violated… It’s the result of prolonged stress, fear, or emotional harm caused by an unhealthy work culture.” Oftentimes, it is the result of a toxic workplace (Nottrodt, 2025). “A toxic work environment fosters a disruptive and persistent culture of negativity, doubt and aggression. This results in high levels of stress, strained relationships and poor production or performance” (Cleveland Clinic, 2025). Discrimination can also cause workplace trauma (Fisher Taubenfeld LLP, 2023).

The Symptoms
Some of the signs of corporate trauma are hypervigilance; impostor syndrome, which refers to the idea that you begin to doubt yourself even when you have proved that you are skilled and accomplished; avoiding your workplace and things associated with it; feeling numb; and difficulty trusting even new colleagues and bosses (Techpreneurship Academy, 2025). High levels of turnover and burnout, a noticeable lack of communication between colleagues, and a feeling of resentment are also important signs of toxic work environments and workplace trauma (Nottrodt, 2025). However, different people might exhibit different symptoms of workplace trauma. Some people might show physical signs such as nausea and fatigue or muscle tightness, while others might exhibit emotional signs and still others might not show any signs.
Workplace trauma continues to impact you even after you leave that workplace, and can alter your worldview (Borgueta, 2025). Similarly to how trauma rewires the brain, it can cause you to be more cynical, and to interpret interactions with others using the traumatic experience as your context.

How It Differs from Burnout
Burnout can often resemble workplace trauma, but they are different things. Burnout, as discussed here, refers to the exhaustion and irritability caused by stress, often as a result of spreading oneself too thin and overworking themself. Workplace trauma, however, is rooted in fear and losing their sense of safety. When an individual is experiencing burnout, their resources are depleted, but when they are experiencing workplace trauma, their bodies believe that they are under threat (Borgueta, 2025). Even though the symptoms are similar, they have different causes. “While burnout is often tied to exhaustion and motivation loss, trauma symptoms tend to involve fear, hypervigilance, and intrusive memories” (Sero Mental Health, 2025).

The Causes
There are many things that can cause corporate trauma, from bullying in the workplace to microaggressions to physical assaults (Nottrodt, 2025). It is important, however, to remember that what causes an incident to be traumatic varies from person to person. One person’s trauma cannot be dismissed simply because another person underwent the same event and does not have the same symptoms. Trauma is not a competition, and everyone’s brains respond differently.
One thing that can contribute to workplace trauma is the organizational structure. By virtue of the often-strict hierarchies in the workplace, it becomes easy for emotional abuse to occur due to the imbalanced power dynamics (Borgueta, 2025). Employees may be reluctant to speak out against their boss, fearing repercussions such as losing their jobs and income (Fournier, 2023). The leader is one of the most-blamed causes of a toxic workplace (iHire, 2026).

Specific Events That May Cause Workplace Trauma
Sexual harassment is also a form of a highly traumatic event that can occur. In 2021, there were over 5,000 sexual harassment charges (U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, 2022), and 78.2% of sexual harassment charges are filed by women. Hansen et al. (2022) found that workplace sexual harassment increases the likelihood of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), which is a mental health condition shown to be linked with workplace trauma (Sero Mental Health, 2025). There are even times when sexual assault occurs on work trips (Borgueta, 2025). The reality that the victims might be pressured to continue working with their attacker adds to the trauma they experience.
There are also incidents of violence in the workplace, such as mass shootings. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (2026) even found that in 2024, there were 733 deaths resulting from violence in the workplace, with 470 of those fatalities being the result of murder. Almost two million Americans report having been victims of workplace violence (Occupational Safety and Health Administration, 2024), which can also include the threat of violence, without follow-through. “The risk for fatal violence is greater for workers in sales, protective services, and transportation. The risk for nonfatal violence resulting in days away from work is greatest for healthcare and social assistance workers” (National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, 2024). Workplace violence has been shown to be highly traumatic (Kolutek, et al., 2024), which is in line with established findings on violence and its impact on mental health.

Ways To Fix It
There are ways to recover from corporate trauma, starting with acknowledging it as such (Carter, 2025; Technepreneurship Academy, 2025). One of the most important steps in healing from trauma is recognizing that it is indeed trauma. It is also important to stop blaming yourself for what happened (Frederick Workforce Services, 2026). It matters that you can acknowledge that what happened to you was unfair, and not something that was your fault for having occurred. Reframing your thoughts can be beneficial with this (Gowan Consulting, 2026). Another important step is finding a safe space and a support network (Carter, 2025).
Seeking professional support can also prove beneficial, with therapies such as cognitive processing therapy (CPT), prolonged exposure (PE) therapy, and eye movement, desensitization, and restructuring (EMDR) therapy proven to be particularly beneficial for PTSD. All of these have a heavy focus on trauma, while some feel that therapies such as cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) may be less effective due to its focus on changing thoughts rather than addressing emotional or physical processes (Adult Therapy, 2024; Saltz, 2021; The Thought Co., 2024). When getting professional support for trauma, evidence-based treatment and interventions that acknowledge the neurological changes of trauma is important, and talk-focused therapy may neglect that (Trauma Aware America, n.d.) However, others have found that CBT may still be beneficial in addressing trauma (Woolley, n.d.). It depends entirely on what fits best for the individual.
However, that said, there still needs to be systemic change to the workplace as a whole in order to fully address workplace trauma, and its causes (Borgueta, 2025).