Quiet Quitting: What is it And is it Here to Stay?

If you’ve been on LinkedIn or have seen the news, you may have heard of a new term going around: Quiet Quitting. It’s a concept that gained traction on TikTok, with its hashtag garnering over 26 million views. To clarify, Quiet Quitting is when someone continues to work in their current position, but does not go above and beyond their standard job duties.

From the workers’ perspective, it’s a strategy designed to ensure that a stable income is maintained while burnout is avoided. The Great Resignation solution to burnout rendered quite a bit of financial regret; Quiet Quitting is the current suggested solution.

“People aren’t going above and beyond; they’re not bending over backwards for their employers anymore and sacrificing their mental and physical health” says **Allison Peck, a biomechanical engineer and career coach in her interview with The Today Show. While Peck is in full support of the concept, she does wish the term was different “…because you’re not quitting, you’re just taking care of yourself.” Her suggestion? Carefully coasting. Another phrase we think could work? Having boundaries and sticking to them.

From the employers’ perspective, there is great concern about how employees relaxing their expected commitment, and therefore productivity, levels will impact their organizations. Employers have historically relied on employees to do “whatever it takes” (which in many cases meant working above the 40 hours per week for which they were paid) to get the job done. The hustle culture absolutely benefitted the employers for whom those employees were hustling. But, workers are now slowing down the hustle and opting to pace themselves. Without employees picking up slack where necessary as they once did, employers are now forced to hire more workers.

To those who have been socially steeped in the concept or meritocracy, quiet quitting appears to be a new ideology born of the TikTok generation, but that doesn’t appear to be the case. According to the 2022 Employee Engagement Gallup poll, 67%-69% of all workers across every generation admit to being either “neutral” or “actively disengaged” at work.

Enter the real question at hand: What can we do to eliminate the need for quiet quitting and to create more authentic employee engagement?

Employers can do their part to improve engagement by ensuring that their employees are provided with supportive management. Jim Harter, Chief Scientist of Workplace Management and Wellbeing at Gallup said in the same Today show segment “Managers are really important…And it’s important to have the right kind of conversations at the right time so that people do know what’s expected of them in their role, and how their work connects to something bigger.”

Employees can also help reduce the urge to quiet quit by letting their leadership teams know when they are feeling overwhelmed. Unfortunately, many workers who are frustrated with their working conditions, their managers or the expectations place upon them and they opt to find a new job instead of communicating the concerns to see if the issues can be resolved. That only leaves the worker who will fill that void with a similar work experience, and the issues (that may have been fixed) are never resolved. Amina Kilpatrick, engagement editor at NPR makes this suggestion: If you feel like you're experiencing burnout at work, setting boundaries can help you regain some control. Additionally, working on addressing any workplace conflict head-on can make a situation easier…”

Ultimately, open and honest communication is key to rebuffing the concept of quiet quitting. Setting expectations from the get-go on what is expected in the role, what you as an individual will and will not do, as well as keeping workers in the know about the company’s goals can help increase engagement. As we’ve said in previous posts, don’t be afraid to express your boundaries. They are crucial in the fight against burnout.

If you’re currently quiet quitting your job and are thinking of making a change, consider submitting your resume to H2B. Because, life’s too short to be miserable 40 hours a week.