The underlying factors of ‘quiet quitting’
When working with individual clients unhappy in their jobs, due to a toxic workplace, I always explain that they have three options:
- To change their mindset to be less affected by work
- To change their actions to create new results
- To leave
Most of my clients, who are driven and self-reflective employees, struggled to accept the first option because it did not align with their values or their identity as a professional. However, it is becoming clear that this first option is what many people are doing in order to survive a workplace they are unhappy in.
‘Quiet quitting’ is the intentional act of doing the bare minimum at work to avoid warnings or disciplinary action, but never going above this level for a prolonged period of time. For someone deeply unhappy at work, this shift in mindset can be helpful in creating a lack of attachment to the outcome of work or what goes on while they are there. It can also be effective if suffering illness, grief, relationship issues or family problems on a temporary basis, to give the employee time to adapt to the physical and mental stress of what is happening in life outside of work. The problem, however, is when this is intentional and prolonged.
Although ‘quiet quitting’ appears to be a new trend, it has, in fact, been present in the workplace for years and brought to the forefront with Trade Unions and ‘working to rule’. The aim of this was to slow down production or disrupt business without striking, being accused of gross misconduct or committing a sackable offence. This form of industrial action intended to be harmful and obtrusive, so, although on a smaller scale, quiet quitting should be viewed similarly. It is simply not beneficial for either party.
Having explored the underlying reasons for employees to find the need to participate in such action, it appears to me that there are five potential reasons why they do it, and they all come back to leadership.
- Not feeling valued
The core to anyone feeling fulfilled at work is feeling valued and appreciated. If someone is going to work every day and no one notices what they are doing, thanks them or recognises their efforts, there is a strong chance that employee will eventually switch off, feeling their work has gone unrecognised and it would not make a difference if they put in 100% effort or 10%.
- Not feeling supported
If an employee has needed some help or asked for some support and has either not received it, been blamed or victimized because of it, this is a strong motive for a vengeful mind. Nobody likes to feel vulnerable, but if they have had the courage to put themselves on the line and ask for help, not getting the support can lead the employee to stop caring about the work in the way they used to. People must feel safe and supported at work in order to thrive. Without this feeling of safety or security, they cannot function at top capacity. This also applies for people who fear losing their job, redundancy or extreme criticism. Similarly, if an employee feels victimized, bullied or scapegoated, the probability of them quiet quitting is high.
- A disrespect for the employer
When employees know their company cares about them and knows them, they will work; it is a give and take relationship in equal parts. However, once the balance tips and the employee feels he/she is giving more than he/she receives, it can instill a disrespect for the company. This can be in knowing they are not being paid fairly, not treated fairly, or knowing the company are not ethical in their actions. Once respect has gone for a person or a company, it is hard to win it back again without strong leadership.
- An awareness of poor leadership
Having leaders who are inefficient, poor timekeepers, poor communicators or ineffective in their role, creates an ethos of having no role model to look up to because boundaries may be blurred. If an employee knows that the leadership will not stand up to them, will not hold them accountable or even notice the drop in standards, it can be easy for a disgruntled employee to down tools and do less and less each day. Strong leaders would be firstly aware of the change and would set out to put it right, not shy away from the conflict.
- A result of quiet firing
As much as quiet quitting has become a new phenomenon, it seems to be that quiet firing has also been out in force. This is when leaders intentionally keep workers in positions without allowing them to develop or grow, not putting them in positions for promotion or reducing responsibility as time passes. It can also be seen in not giving pay rises for long periods of time, as well as over-burdening staff with so much work they burnout or cannot cope with the workload. All of which, inadvertently lead to staff being forced to leave the company.
The one thing they all have in common is a poor workplace culture and the one thing that can fix them all is strong leadership. So, what is the solution?
The key, as always begins with awareness. The company must be aware of the problem to be able to change it. And from there, embrace the conversations. Ask the employees why their productivity levels have stopped. Ask why they have dropped their standards and why they do not feel they want to work to their usual capability? Yes, some of the conversations may be difficult, but they could rarely be about the company and will most often be about the employee. Just giving them a voice for them to feel seen and heard could be all it takes to increase productivity back to normal levels.