Employee Engagement | What is 'Quiet Quitting', and how can employers combat this latest trend?

Quiet quitting as a phrase became popular thanks to social media, with trending videos on TikTok gaining prominence for the idea with many, often Gen Z and millennial, workers aligning with the idea.

But what is quiet quitting, how big is the problem, and what can organisations do about it?

What is quiet quitting?

Quiet quitting encompasses a range of behaviours that correlate with disengagement. That is, when an employee feels like they’re no longer valued, feel burnt out from prolonged periods of heavy workloads, or are generally unhappy with their job and terms, they begin to dial down their efforts and mentally check out.

Those either actively or passively choosing to ‘quiet quit’ may do so because of a lack of career growth, poor pay or feeling burnt out. And the pandemic has caused a major shift in how many employees want to position work in their lives, with many reconsidering what matters most to them and how they wish to spend their time. The Great Resignation was one of the results of this recalibration, and perhaps quiet quitting is another.