Quiet Quitting: Understanding and Addressing it in the Workplace

Imagine showing up at your company on a Monday morning and learning half of the employees had quit over the weekend. For business leaders, that would be a nightmare. The company’s productivity would tank, customer calls and emails would go unanswered, and assembly lines would slow to a crawl. It would clearly be a crisis.

Many business leaders don’t know that half of their employees have already quit — they just didn’t go about it in the traditional way. According to a recent Gallup Poll, half of the US workforce is engaging in a practice known as quiet quitting, which, in some ways, is worse than the type of quitting that involves an employee cleaning out their desk and moving on to another company.

What is quiet quitting?

Quiet quitting is a phenomenon that surfaced in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic. Many workers left their jobs at that time, joining an exodus from the workplace that was dubbed the Great Resignation. Quiet quitters stayed in their jobs but disengaged. Essentially, they continued to collect their paychecks without giving any passion to the work they were doing. Quiet quitters show up physically, but they have given up emotionally.

To appreciate the damage quiet quitting can cause, you must appreciate how valuable engagement is. Experts identify employee engagement as one of the key factors at play in successful companies. When employees engage, they bring their whole selves to the office. They are absent less often, produce better quality work, and work more efficiently.

Conversely, employees who are not engaged create drag in an organization. Although they may still appear productive, their output is far below maximum capacity. Generally, disengaged employees are not concerned about company values, reputation, or success. With quiet quitting, disengaged employees not only cut into productivity but also take the seat of another employee who could bring more passion to the position.

To make matters worse, disengaged employees can cause collateral damage in an organization. Their negativity can rub off on those around them, leading to an overall decline in motivation, efficiency, and productivity. When hard-working employees see someone slacking off and getting away with it, they begin to wonder why they are working so hard. Leaders who ignore or endure quiet quitters risk allowing the condition to become contagious.

How do you respond to quiet quitting?

Business leaders can respond to quiet quitting in one of two ways. The first response is reactive and involves identifying employees who are quiet quitting and prompting them to either get back on track or leave their jobs.

A better response is one in which the company takes proactive steps to address issues that encourage quiet quitting. Rather than seeing quiet quitting as an infection brought in from the outside, a proactive response recognizes that quiet quitting is — at least in part — a reflection of the organization’s culture.

Quiet quitting often occurs when an employee feels their career is not going anywhere. Either they aren’t given opportunities for advancement, or they don’t perceive the opportunities available to them. Even for well-paid employees, a feeling of hopelessness about advancing can quickly lead to disengagement.

Companies that are proactive and intentional about promoting career advancement can push back against quiet quitting. Clearly communicating the pathway for advancement, including the required qualifications or metrics, is integral to empowering employees in this area. Company leaders should also provide regular performance reviews and feedback to evaluate and encourage the changes needed for advancement with training and development programs aimed at imparting the skills needed for advancement.

Fostering a healthy workplace culture also helps to drive engagement and discourage quiet quitting. Engagement flows from a connection with coworkers and company values. When employees like being at the workplace and are proud of the role they are playing in the company’s overall success, they are much more likely to invest in the work they are doing.

High levels of disengagement at a company could indicate that its internal culture is unhealthy. Leaders who see signs of disengagement should evaluate the culture and make any investments necessary to improve its health. Taking steps to promote better work-life balance, recognizing and rewarding employees, and fostering teamwork can revive a dying culture, creating a workplace where people want to engage.

Overall, improving culture requires creating an environment where people have more than a paycheck to look forward to. Money is just one of many rewards that influence human behavior. Investing in your employees’ wellness, professional capabilities, and future fosters a culture in which they feel appreciated, which inspires them to stay engaged.

Recent stats show that quiet quitting is not going away. Among Gen Z workers, nearly half now say they are coasting at work. To help workers re-engage, companies must proactively build a culture that facilitates growth while fostering a feeling that employees are doing work that matters.