Quiet quitting phenomenon: a new trend or a new opportunity for reflection?

TikTok has revived a not-so-silent phenomenon, which now appears as the quiet quitting. Although re-appearing with a new image, this concept that has originated many publications in the media, is a problem that human resources departments and all people managers have been facing for some years now. It is an old behaviour with a new name. Basically, whereas a few years ago there was the idea that to build a career you had to put in more hours and always be available in the workplace, nowadays this is not quite the case. 

According to this concept, collaborators should work within their working hours, making overtime the exception rather than the rule. In addition, it also suggests that on a day-to-day basis, people should focus on their contractual work obligations rather than performing tasks outside their scope of work. 

In the same vein, the phenomenon of thegreat resignation has emerged, where it is expected that 1 in 5 employees may leave their jobs in 2022. Quiet quitting and thegreat resignation have demonstrated the acceleration of a paradigm shift at the workplace. A change that organisations don’t seem to be able to keep up with. 

Not surprisingly, quiet quitting has been widely shared and disseminated on the TikTok platform, whose predominant audience is young people. Currently around 60% of the platform’s users are under 30 years old. The adherence to this new trend is in line with this new way of looking at work that the most recent age groups in the labour market have been advocating: work as an essential dimension in life but not as the goal of life. 

It is crucial to distinguish laziness or lack of commitment to completing tasks within the stipulated time. People are not saying that they do not want to work. In fact, productivity is not measured by the number of hours worked, but by the results presented. Staying in the office constantly two or three hours longer than the established schedule can suggest other issues, such as: work disorganisation, lack of rhythm or the need to hire more people, among others. 

Besides this change in attitude, other causes have been attributed to this new trend. If, on the one hand, a few years ago the job market opportunities were limited, which made it difficult to find or change jobs, nowadays there is a shortage of people in some sectors. The globalisation of the market and the possibility of remote work have accelerated this mobility. On the other hand, the increase in the cost of living, low salaries, the growing family demands, and the appreciation of time after work seem to contribute to this trend. At an organisational level, it is thought that a lack of trust, consistency, low employee recognition, lack of sense of belonging and inconsistent internal communication may have contributed to the significant buy-in to quiet quitting. 

The growing concern for mental health may also play a role here. The latest data in different countries show that mental health in adults needs to be addressed. There are increasing cases of work-related illness and sick leave combined with high job dissatisfaction. Quiet quitting seems to present itself as a protective strategy against this even bigger phenomenon called burnout. People are realising that it is not worth the overwhelming effort of dealing with constant stress and giving oneself to an organisation in which, most of the time, they do not see the desired return or recognition. Not working too much enables people to reinforce work-family conciliation, practice self-care, have a hobby, or participate in any complementary learning activity, all these are proven and effective work recovery strategies.  

Quiet quitting could be interpreted as a trend that challenge organisations to reflect deeper on their own status quo. Objectively, organisations can only gain if people are healthy and satisfied in their workplace. People management should focus on long term, it is not advantageous to have people making a 200% effort this month and next month being so exhausted that they cannot perform. The hours invested in a project are not directly proportional to the financial return, the quality of the hours invested is what enables profit. Also each person has unique needs to reach their maximum proactivity in a healthy and sustained way. People need to have their time to rest and to do other activities that develop them to be productive in their work.  

Although we are in a technological age, the most precious asset organisations have is the people who work there. It is fundamental that people feel good, safe and welcomed in the organisation. The organisational culture must be fully inclusive, allowing various working methods that are compatible with the business. Flexibility is already a key point for talent retention, because one working method (e.g., face-to-face, remote, hybrid) may not suit all people. Furthermore, organisations should boost employees development, through training, different collaboration experiences, enhancing their autonomy and learning continuously.  

In this sense, what can organisations do to respond positively to this quiet quitting call: 

• Promote a flexible culture, open to diversity, based on a relationship of trust and with a focus on fostering the development and empowerment of people.  

• Encourage a culture of respect for working hours, avoiding sending emails after hours or at weekends, scheduling meetings or asking for tasks close to departure time, among others. 

• Empower managers to be consistent in their behaviour, to dialogue with people, and to continuously develop their leadership skills. 

• Listen to people, understand what they think about their working conditions, bearing in mind that there are generational differences that should also be respected and never ignored.  

• Experiment different working methodologies, anchored in scientific evidence, and learn from case studies from other companies: advantages, disadvantages, and limitations. 

• Define clear short, medium, and long-term work objectives and monitor them through metrics, not just concerning key results (OKR) but also about the process of work itself. This way people are supported and learn how to increase their working performance and become more efficient.  

• Review and define organisational health and wellbeing policies, going beyond the mere benefits already available, learn about their use and other intervention needs, with a special focus on work-family balance strategies.  

• Prepare managers to watch out for changes in their team members’ behaviour, such as signs of extreme tiredness and discomfort. Motivate them to get to know their people, their aspirations, tastes, concerns, among other. Managers should seek and validate value in all people, in their effort, and in their work. 

References:

Brito, A. P. (2022, September 26). Do extra mile ao quiet quitting. Observador. Available at: https://observador.pt/opiniao/do-extra-mile-ao-quiet-quitting 

Doyle, B. (2022, August 13). TikTok Statistics – Updated Aug 2022. Wallaroo. Available at: https://wallaroomedia.com/blog/social-media/tiktok-statistics/ 

England, A. (2022, September 12). People Are ‘Quiet Quitting’ And It Could Be Great For Mental Health. Very Well Mind. Available at: https://www.verywellmind.com/how-quiet-quitting-can-affect-our-mental-health-6502057 

Harter, J. (2022, September 6). Is Quiet Quitting Real? Gallup. Available at: https://www.gallup.com/workplace/398306/quiet-quitting-real.aspx 

Karra, S. (2022, September 27). The Great Resignation As An Opportunity For The Great Reshuffle. Forbes. Available at: https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbeshumanresourcescouncil/2022/09/27/the-great-resignation-as-an-opportunity-for-the-great-reshuffle/?sh=4231d23ca5e4 

Madell, R. (2022, September 22). Can Quiet Quitting Hurt Your Career? U.S. News. Available at: https://money.usnews.com/money/blogs/outside-voices-careers/articles/what-is-quiet-quitting 

Mendonça, B. (2022, September 22). Há um movimento entre os trabalhadores: chamam-lhe “quiet quitting” e é tudo menos silencioso. Expresso. Available at: https://expresso.pt/sociedade/2022-09-22-Ha-um-movimento-entre-os-trabalhadores-chamam-lhe-quiet-quitting-e-e-tudo-menos-silencioso-d775e018 

Pessoa, P. (2022, September 26). Quiet Quitting: a versão 2.0 do Work-Life Balance. Pessoas by Eco. Available at: https://eco.sapo.pt/opiniao/quiet-quitting-a-versao-2-0-do-work-life-balance 

Tapper, J. (2022, August 6). Quiet quitting: why doing the bare minimum at work has gone global. The Guardian. Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/money/2022/aug/06/quiet-quitting-why-doing-the-bare-minimum-at-work-has-gone-global 

With Company (2022, September 29). Quitting the noise: why we need to intentionally design our company cultures. Available at: https://medium.com/@withcompany/quitting-the-noise-why-we-need-to-intentionally-design-our-company-cultures-f2e076cfc1e7 

Zenger, J., Folkman, J. (2022, August 31). Quiet Quitting is About Bad Bosses, Not Bad Employees. Harvard Business Review. Available at: https://hbr.org/2022/08/quiet-quitting-is-about-bad-bosses-not-bad-employees