Founder of the Legacy Leaders Institute, Transforming Executives & Entrepreneurs into High-Performing Impact Leaders.
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The work landscape is changing so quickly. The current economy, featuring high inflation and stock declines, is scaring even the most intrepid business leaders.
As we recently celebrated Labor Day in the U.S., I cannot help but reflect on workers' contributions to America's strength, prosperity and well-being. This is the very reason for the holiday, and yet, sadly, the apparent lack of support for the average worker is reaching new heights.
To top it all, new buzzwords screech across the headlines: "Quiet Quitting!" "Quiet Firing!" Both sound ominous, if you ask me.
You might be wondering: Are these short-term behaviors, or have they always been part of the working environment? My answer is, it depends—and this is why.
First, let's start from the very beginning: the meaning of these phrases and why it is vital to acknowledge and address them in every organization.
Quiet Quitting: This refers to a decision made by some talent to do just enough work without extra effort—but also without actually quitting due to poor compensation, lack of incentives or support, zero work/life balance or high burnout, to name a few factors. For many talent and team members, a demonstrated lack of respect or no or few raises/promotions quickly turns into systemic issues.
Why is it happening? Simply put, people are "acting their wages."
In this instance, talent is doing just enough—doing work that reflects how much they are paid without going the extra mile. In my opinion, that is not a good position to be in for the talent or the employer. Unfortunately, a toxic working environment reflects a poor culture, often due to a lack of effective leadership.
As if that is not bad enough, we are also seeing another complex problem.
Quiet Firing: This is the decision and behavior by some employers to not give employees a much-needed break and to instead overload them with additional responsibilities, leading to burnout due to high demands, such as accessibility 24/7, shorter breaks, no time off or similar. But there is another explanation here where talent performance is not up to standards and employers passively push their employees out the door. This type of behavior is also known as "constructive discharge" or "coaching out" so employees can leave voluntarily.
What I find rather fascinating is that many organizations have tried so hard to save money without investing in their people through their talent development programs. As a result, we see bigger skill gaps that create exponentially increased burnout in an overextended workforce.
It appears that we continue to miss the most fundamental lesson that a healthy workforce is every organization's backbone and biggest asset. We can successfully turn things around by truly understanding that prosperity cannot occur without inner strength and well-being. Until then, we will continue to repeat these fundamental mistakes at the expense of our workforce.
Further, despite labor shortages, we see an excessive amount of job postings that companies are listing while not yet actually hiring, as they are practicing a hiring freeze or hiring delay. As a result, we see more chaos, crisis and conflict. Is this behavior ethical, many are wondering? Is this a reflection of the true state of an organization's integrity? In the long run, how this behavior impacts companies' reputations should not surprise anyone. The bigger question we should ask ourselves is, are we part of the problem or the solution?
What are your thoughts on quiet quitting and quiet firing in your organization? With every challenge, there is a plethora of opportunities!
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