Should business leaders be worried about Quiet Quitting?
Business leaders are becoming increasingly concerned about the ‘Quiet Quitting’ movement that has been affecting the likes of Meta and Google.
A 2022 study from Gallup suggests that 69% of employees born after 1989 are quietly quitting, and a shocking 50% of the US workforce are following suit.
But why could this be?
What is quiet quitting?
Quiet quitting shouldn’t be taken too literally.
It is a recent term, rule and trend developed by employees to establish defined responsibilities, expectations and working hours. Essentially, it means not going above and beyond in your role.
The quiet quitting movement is an employee’s response to the pressures of ‘hustle culture’ and becoming increasingly frustrated, burned-out and over-worked. It seems to have stemmed from the Covid-19 pandemic and the effect it has had on working environment and workplace flexibility.
This is not necessarily an excuse to do the bare minimum, but to set clear boundaries that perhaps have been taken advantage of until now, leading employees to mentally check out.
The risks
Lack of productivity
The main concern behind quiet quitting is productivity levels dropping, as it can have long term effects on other members of the team.
Every employee has a part to play, and if quiet quitting gets taken to an extreme, it can start to affect the daily working lives of others in the business.
Career decline
The risks also lie with the employee themselves. By taking quiet quitting too far, your staff could be risking their career development with your company. If motivation begins to decline, so can opportunities, and other employees may decide to take advantage of the opportunity instead.
The signs
- Lack of enthusiasm and energy – your normally chirpy and happy employee has become less enthusiastic in the office.
- Saying no to extra work – your employee will turn down extra work that may sit outside their job description or push back on projects. This may be because, where they would usually put in extra time and effort to complete work, they’re now setting workload boundaries and finding their voice. We are not suggesting that turning down work is a bad thing, it is purely circumstantial.
- Disengagement in after-work activities or isolation from colleagues – your employee has recently stopped attending social events or spending time with their colleagues inside and outside of work.
- Teammates taking on extra work to accommodate – there should be fair balance between the workload of your team, however you may start to notice other employees appearing unusually ‘snowed under’.
Can quiet quitting be prevented?
CEOs and business leaders shouldn’t be dismissing their employees who are quietly quitting. Instead, they should worry about how to prevent them from getting to this stage in the first place.
Open communication is key to avoiding quiet quitting. If there is a comfortable and healthy level of communication and negotiation, your company has better chance of avoiding negative feelings and the movement all together.
Most quiet quitters feel shut down and unheard, and therefore have no choice but to put their feelings into actions.
Unhappy employees can corrode company culture and confronting your employee about this trend can have a negative effect. This should be approached from a place of encouragement in order to find the reason behind their decisions.
Lastly, if you’re noticing more than one person displaying these signs, it may be time to consider your leadership practices before it’s too late.
Avoid the risk of quiet quitting and check out how you can show your team appreciation!
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