The Great Resignation…I am uncertain who first mentioned this phrase to me, nor do I recall the context of the conversation; however, I do remember being encouraged to read about this phenomenon. And it doesn’t take much persuasion for the investigative side of me to start digging, in efforts to learn more about a topic I find intriguing. But one issue related to the Great Resignation that resonated more with me was the idea of Quiet Quitting. The phrase seems to be generating a great deal of interest on social media applications like TikTok where younger generations of employees are rejecting the idea of “going above and beyond in their careers. It isn’t about getting off the company payroll, these employees say,” but about considering life and focusing time on interests outside of the workplace.

As a health educator, it is not uncommon for my study to lead me into various aspects of the eight dimensions of health, including occupational health. Now, if you take a little time to dig into specific areas of occupational health including work engagement, life satisfaction, and emerging generations, topics such as Quiet Quitting become extremely relevant to today’s conversations, both within and outside of higher education. It was an article by Lindsay Ellis and Angela Yang that brought this workplace issue to the forefront of my mind, because as someone who is trying to equip students for life outside of college, the Gallup research is enlightening. “Jim Harter, chief scientist for Gallup’s workplace and well-being research, said workers’ descriptions of ‘quiet quitting’ align with a large group of survey respondents that he classifies as ‘not engaged’—those who will show up to work and do the minimum required but not much else. More than half of workers surveyed by Gallup who were born after 1989—54%—fall into this category. One factor Gallup uses to measure engagement is whether people feel their work has purpose. Younger employees report that they don’t feel that way, the data show. These are the people who are more likely to work passively and look out for themselves over their employers, Dr. Harter said.”

Now, with nearly every issue in life, there is an appropriate stability that needs to be maintained, and although I do not favor the term work/life balance, that seems to be the common language currently being used to communicate this idea of maintaining health in multiple dimensions of life—both in the workplace and at home. Much of my research is focused on the world of sports, and specifically how does sport attract and retain women in a time consuming and demanding profession; however, this idea of Quiet Quitting is not just impacting those entering the workforce, but I offer it’s hitting a mark with those in other generations as well. As Emerging Generations have witnessed their parents and others commit fully to the workplace, sometimes at the expense of work/life balance, they are opting to oppose this Hustle Culture, to Take It Slow, and find a new path to a flourishing life.

However, one of my greatest concerns lies with the Quiet Quitting that I am witnessing in my own generation, where attempting to maintain occupational health is being hindered by employers asking its dedicated personnel to do more work with less resources. Because these people have been willing in the past to sacrifice their own time and resources, it is expected that they will continue along this path, but instead, I am witnessing people choosing to Quietly Quit–to either walk away completely or have to draw hard boundaries with what responsibilities they are willing to accept. This could explain some of the reasons research is finding low morale, physical and mental health issues, and an unappealing environment for attracting quality employees, in many of today’s organizations.

The crushing weight of expectation from employers seems to even occur in Christian organizations where we understand that God created us as finite creatures, but the statistics related to physical and mental well-being shed light on the fact that the Hustle Culture is impacting us all. Because I want us all to flourish at life, I struggle to accept that there is not a better route which allows us to embrace the limits of our humanity, yet still be productive and satisfied at work. Please consider sharing about organizations you witness handling these issues successfully. Help me to grasp how to equip our college students to take a healthy, preventative approach to the workplace before they land in jobs where engagement, meaning, and purpose become an issue.

Reference:

Ellis, L. & Yang, A. (2022, August 12). If your co-workers are ‘quiet quitting,’ here’s what that means. Wall Street Journal. Retrieved from https://www.wsj.com/articles/if-your-gen-z-co-workers-are-quiet-quitting-heres-what-that-means-11660260608