After star James Conner was placed on injured reserve, there is even more controversy surrounding the Arizona Cardinals before their game against the Los Angeles Rams on Sunday.
It was revealed in a story by Kayln Kahler of The Athletic that current and former Cardinals employees claimed the work environment at the team could be described as them “working in fear” under owner Michael Bidwill.
Former COO Ron Minegar notified Bidwell in 2019 that “a majority” of Cardinals employees were “working in fear” as a result of the toxic workplace he had created.
Bidwill, it has been claimed, was a micromanager who yelled at subordinates for what appeared to be minor offenses, creating a work climate where many felt like they were “walking on eggshells.”
REPORT: According to The Athletic, the #Cardinals have a troubling workplace culture and had some employees are ‘working in fear’, via @kalynkahler
From the report: "One employee said a supervisor told her she would be an “official Cardinal” once she got yelled at by Bidwill or… https://t.co/Dc6yisBVXf pic.twitter.com/3LThFBQf3F
— Dov Kleiman (@NFL_DovKleiman) October 12, 2023
One employee said
“You would think being an entertainment sports team that it would be a fun place to work. No, not at all,” “People just didn’t say anything. They complain under their breath, and they go into their car at lunch and they cry,”
The report describes an employment survey that was distributed in 2019 but then “disappeared into thin air” due to how negatively it portrayed Bidwill. A few, according to Kahler, “tore Bidwill into shreds.”
As time went on, there was no longer any discussion of the polls, which led several employees to feel as though their sentiments and ideas were irrelevant.
Bidwill reportedly got involved in menial daily tasks, shouted at a worker for switching off the fluorescent lights in the office in favor of softer light, and griped about the area number on a worker’s cell phone, according to accounts.
A female employee was yelled at by Bidwill because, according to him, she was moving too slowly rather than because she had done anything wrong.
To make matters worse, Bidwill’s office was located in a hallway on the second level of Cardinals headquarters that was referred to as a “tip-toe zone.” Bidwill’s mood fluctuated day to day, therefore staff members did their best to stay away from that location.
As of the time of publication, neither the Cardinals organization nor Bidwill had commented on the happenings.
