The answer is always it depends . You work with other human beings sometimes humans treat other humans like poop . Some days , you will be the one being treated like poop . Some days , you will be the one treating others like poop . Or worse , you will be the instrument via which statute law or company policy frustrates everyone by treating them all like poop . There are pleasant work environments and unpleasant ones , just as there are friendly and unfriendly people . Sometimes there are external indications that you can screen for in the interview . Sometimes you won ' t be able to assess your compatibility with the office culture until you ' ve been in the role for a while . But there are very few broad generalisations that always hold true for colleagues ' superiors ' behaviour in the private sector versus the public sector . Every workplace is different .