A Masterclass in What Not To Do: EHS Lessons From Severance

Even if you haven't watched Severance, odds are good you've heard people talking about the hit show using odd terms like "innies" and "outties." First, let’s be clear: the show is not about belly buttons. It's actually much stranger than that.

The series follows employees at a mysterious company called Lumen who have undergone a surgical procedure to strictly divide their work selves from their personal lives. It's a dramatic premise, but one that illuminates a deeper truth: when disconnection is fundamental to workplace culture, mental health and well-being are often the first things to suffer.

In this post, we'll explore five workplace behaviors that Severance exaggerates (but that many people experience) and how strong EHS practices can support something better.

Five Workplace Behaviors to Leave Behind (According to Severance)

1. Enforcing rigid work/life separation 

At Lumen, certain employees are split into two selves. Their work self (their “innie”) knows nothing of their personal life (their “outtie”), and vice versa. The goal is total separation: no stress from home affecting your performance, and no work worries following you out the door.

The impact

The fantasy of flawless boundaries may sound appealing, especially to workers stretched thin. But when people are pressured to compartmentalize too much, they struggle to find balance. Over time, inflexible schedules, emotional silencing, and productivity-at-all-costs culture erode mental health and push people toward burnout.

A healthier approach

Work and life are not cleanly divisible, and the systems we build shouldn't pretend they are. Supporting well-being starts with designing flexibility into the way work happens. That includes advocating for policies that recognize the full scope of employee needs: mental health resources, adaptable schedules, and work environments that support both focus and recovery. When people are allowed to bring their full selves to work, they're more capable, more connected, and more resilient.

Learn more: The Role of EHS in Workforce Mental Health Programs

2. Socially siloing departments

At Lumen, employees are confined to rigid departmental silos. Interacting across teams is discouraged, and in some cases, quietly punished. The result is a workplace where people know of each other, but aren't allowed to know each other.

The impact

When organizations limit opportunities for employees to connect across roles or departments, they introduce a subtle but significant risk to workplace health. Disconnection like this prevents vital trust-building interactions and reduces the likelihood that people will speak up when something seems off. This can lead to a culture where people focus more on staying in their lane than staying safe.

A healthier approach

One of the most effective ways to reduce these risks is to build social cohesion and collaboration into the structure of work. Encouraging regular, cross-departmental interaction, whether through shared safety meetings, peer feedback loops, or collaborative problem-solving sessions, helps strengthen trust and surface possible issues before they become problems.

Learn more: An Emerging and Growing Workplace Issue: Psychosocial Risks

3. Obscuring the purpose of work

In Severance, no one – not even the employees themselves – seems to know what the “macrodata refinement” team is actually doing. They sit at glowing screens, dragging numbers into files with vague instructions about removing “scary” data. There’s no explanation. No context. Just tasks for task’s sake.

The impact

When workers don’t understand the purpose of what they’re doing, the job becomes mechanical, something to get through, not something to engage with. That disconnection feeds chronic stress and contributes to burnout, even when workloads aren’t objectively extreme. People want their work to matter. When purpose is missing, it can lead to frustration, detachment, and a creeping sense that the effort doesn’t add up to anything meaningful.

That disconnect takes a toll on both personal well-being and collective performance.

A healthier approach

Helping employees understand how their work contributes to the broader mission supports both mental well-being and organizational resilience. When people see the connection between their role and the bigger picture, they're more likely to stay engaged, notice problems early, and feel a deeper sense of investment in the outcomes.

Learn more: Workplace Culture Surveys: How to Measure and Improve Employee Health and Well-Being 

4. Offering superficial or inauthentic recognition

In Severance, Lumen rewards employees with bizarre perks like drumlines and “waffle parties” (apologies to the waffle enthusiasts for whom this may be a dream reward). The rituals are elaborate, but entirely disconnected from the employees they’re meant to honor. Without any shared joy, they come off as just another work task wrapped in the illusion of reward.

The impact

When recognition feels forced, out of touch, or performative, it misses the mark. Workers can sense when appreciation is more about optics than authenticity. Over time, that disconnect breeds cynicism. People stop trusting praise, assume ulterior motives, and disengage emotionally. Instead of boosting morale, hollow gestures can leave employees feeling unseen, misunderstood, or even mocked.

A healthier approach

Meaningful recognition starts with empathy. It requires listening to what employees actually value and building appreciation into the culture in ways that feel genuine and reciprocal. Whether it’s a public thank-you, a flexible schedule, or development opportunities, the most effective recognition strategies reflect what matters to the people receiving them, not just the people giving them. When done well, recognition reinforces connection, builds trust, and strengthens the social fabric that safety depends on.

5. Responding to mistakes with punishment instead of curiosity

At Lumen, mistakes are met with eerie, ritualized punishment. Employees who step out of line are sent to the "break room," where they must recite scripted apologies until deemed sincere. The goal of this exercise isn't understanding; it's control.

The impact

Fear shrinks people. It quiets instincts, silences questions, and trains workers to avoid visibility rather than pursue improvement. In a culture where errors are met with punishment, employees are less likely to report problems, admit uncertainty, or share near-misses. That silence endangers workers. Over time, risk accumulates in the gaps between what's known and what's hidden.

A healthier approach

Effective EHS practices are built on learning, not blame. When something goes wrong, the most productive question isn't "Who messed up?" it's "What broke down, and how can we fix it?" A Just Culture framework encourages organizations to examine the systems that contribute to mistakes while still holding space for accountability. With this approach, every incident, no matter how small, turns into an opportunity to make the workplace safer for everyone.

Reconnecting the Whole Worker

Severance may be fiction, but the emotional terrain it explores feels familiar. The temptation to compartmentalize – to leave stress at the door or mute parts of yourself to get through the day – is real. But over time, those internal splits wear people down. They disconnect workers not only from their roles, but from each other and from themselves.

That’s why modern health and safety strategies must account for the full experience of being at work.

Total Worker Health® provides a framework for doing just that. It’s a proactive, integrated approach that considers the full spectrum of well-being, including:

• Physical safety through hazard prevention and safe work environments
• Mental and emotional health supported by stress-reduction efforts and access to care
• Purposeful culture that helps employees understand how their work contributes
• Empowered feedback that makes space for concerns, questions, and ideas to surface

Each of these elements contributes to a healthier, more sustainable workplace.

When EHS programs are designed with this kind of depth, they move beyond reactive compliance. They help shape environments where people feel capable, connected, and safe enough to do their best work—day in and day out.

Want to create a healthier, more connected workplace?

Explore our Health & Safety Consulting services and learn how our team can help you build an environment where health, safety, and culture work together.