Apple TV's hit show "Severance" depicts what could arguably be defined as a
If you ask attorney Carol Merchasin, head of sexual misconduct in spiritual communities practice at McAllister Olivarius, the answer is yes.
"Sometimes there's a doctrine involved, sometimes there's not," says Merchasin. "There's no agreed-upon definition of what a cult is. But there are indicators or markers — the No. 1 marker is a charismatic, authoritarian leader."
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This specifically refers to a leader who is not held accountable for their actions due to a lack of checks and balances, or another system that allows the leader's actions to be questioned. Merchasin notes that executives like Harvey Weinstein and Roger Ailes are examples of leaders who were not held accountable — and if someone spoke out against them, that person's job or entire career could be destroyed.
Just two years ago, three dancers filed a lawsuit against 7M Films, claiming the owner and pastor was running a cult that subjected workers to physical, sexual and emotional abuse.
"We are talking about a situation where there is zero tolerance for criticism, there is no ability to dissent," says Merchasin. "I can certainly imagine workplaces in which people feel that way; that the leader is always right and they cannot voice any opposition."
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Cults are also defined by how they reframe the outside world. Merchasin highlights how, in her own cases, victims typically are told that the outside world is a bad, unsafe place. While this may seem harder to pull off in the corporate world, employees under extreme duress can feel like the outside world holds little meaning and their lives hinge on their success in the workplace, no matter how that success is defined.
This act of reframing goes even further, presenting abuse within the organization or company as a necessary experience for an employee's personal growth, explains Merchasin.
"Let's say I have a client who is in a cult," she says. "She knows what the word 'rape' means, but when it happens to her inside the cult, it's framed in a different way. It's framed as a spiritual experience. Even if you think it's bad, you will be told you're just not enlightened enough to understand that this is a good thing for you."
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The good news is that, unlike in a religious or spiritual organization, there are more guardrails in the corporate world, from workplace discrimination laws to the role of HR, that ensure compliance with laws meant to keep people safe. However, Merchasin reminds employers that these checks and balances are only effective if employees across the board can safely disagree with their leaders.
"If I were a CEO of a company, I would want to make sure that not just for the benefit of the employees, but for the benefit of the company, power is not held in one place," she says. "That it's not held with one person who cannot be challenged."
