Quiet quitting—is it happening where you work?

Everyone is talking about quiet quitting—but what does it actually mean, and is it happening where you work?  

Quiet quitting can mean anything from not taking your job seriously to doing the absolute minimum so you can focus on your life outside of work. For people who are doing it, it may be a way to separate their identity from their job. For others, it’s a way to overcome burnout by caring less about work and protecting their mental health. Or it may be a way to create boundaries and encourage work–life balance. 

But is quiet quitting something you need to worry about? According to recent research from the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) Research Institute, 51% of human resources professionals are concerned about the negative impact of quiet quitting, with one in three saying that people managers at their organization are concerned by this trend. Yet fewer than 36% of respondents report that employees are quiet quitting in their organizations. 

Of those who are experiencing quiet quitting, 60% say their organization’s culture enables it, with qualitative data revealing management issues such as lack of engagement, communication problems, and poor people management, as well as remote and hybrid work (e.g., poor supervisor support, lack of accountability) as common themes influencing workplace culture and encouraging quiet quitting. 

Whether employees are quiet quitting or actually quitting, it’s important that organizations encourage high levels of engagement, as engagement can boost productivity and reduce turnover. There are many things your organization can do to address lack of engagement in order to ensure the ramifications associated with quiet quitting are minimized. 

Need help finding ways to engage and motivate your employees? InVista can help. Learn more.