Quiet Quitting – What’s It All About?

Author: Shelley Jacobs

Date: XXX

‘Quiet Quitting’ is a phrase that is currently doing the rounds in the media but what is it and what do employees and employers or managers need to know about it?

The term ‘Quiet Quitting’ recently came to the fore when a protagonist of a social media post used the term while discussing their views about their job. They advised that due to unrealistic demands of the job, they were going to do the bear minimum, in terms of hours worked, effort and enthusiasm and only work as per the expressed terms of their employment contract. The post went viral and thus the term ‘Quiet Quitting’ was born and has rapidly embedded itself into society’s day to day vernacular. Whilst the phrase itself may be new, the behavioural patterns are not. This type of behaviour, regardless of what we call it, is more common in the workplace that perhaps we realise, and if left to fester, can be negative for both employee and employer. It can also permeate throughout an organisation and can rapidly erode an organisations culture.

For the second year in a row, the results of the IRPM and ARMA Wellbeing survey suggests that the wellbeing of our workforce is not in a good state. Therefore, the implications of ‘Quiet Quitting’ could have some challenging ramifications for our workforce who many may view this as a good option instead of simply leaving a job they are unhappy in. To fully understand quiet quitting, we need to consider both sides of the story here. This behaviour occurs when an employee feels that they are not being treated fairly and rather than quit their job, they are choosing to stay, but adopting a mindset of ‘quiet quitting’ instead.

What we are witnessing is the impact of damage to the psychological contract, which is a psychological concept that originated in the 1960’s. When someone is employed, they typically have a written contract which details the terms of employment between an employer and the employee. The psychological contract on the other hand, refers to the unwritten rules, values, principles and expectations of the relationship between employer & employee. Contractually, the employee works, and the employers pay a salary for that work. But beneath the surface, both parties have expectations of each other. If the employee expectations are not met, we start to see a breakdown in behaviour.

The below table highlights some of the key expectations between employer and employee.

Employee Gives & Employer Expects

  • Time

  • Effort

  • Trust

  • Creativity

  • Productivity

  • Loyalty

  • Results

  • Accepts change

  • Sacrifices

  • Agility

  • Innovation

Employee Expect & Employer Gives

  • Benefits

  • Empowerment

  • Security

  • Recognition

  • Training

  • Qualifications

  • Responsibility

  • Development

  • Dignity

  • Respect

  • To be treated equitably and fairly 

Before the term ‘Quite Quitting’ was popularised, I would often hear managers referring to ‘entitled’ which has morphed into a more extreme version being quiet quitting behaviour. Essentially though, these behaviours are fueled from a sense of being treated unfairly, not feeling valued or other expectations (implicit or explicit) that have not been met or delivered. Think about promises made to employees that don’t materialise – promotion possibilities, salary increases suggested but not carried out, unrealistic or unmanageable workload, improvements promised and not delivered, expected to work more hours than is stated in the contract for no extra salary and so on.

What can employers / managers do?

  • In the first instance, it’s a good time to review policies around fairness, organisational culture and work practices in your workplace.

  • Review policies and procedures particularly regarding rewards & recognition, performance reviews/appraisals, general treatment of employees – are you treating everyone fairly?

  • Try not to dangle carrots that can’t be substantiated. This often happens in job interviews where prospective employees are offered many things that don’t materialise later. In other words, do what you say you’re going to do or if you can’t, make sure you say so and explain why.

  • If the issue centres around a need to manage work / life balance better, I am all for that. Some organisations promote and encourage employees to work beyond their standard hours and reward this sort of behaviour. Personally, I am not a fan of that approach in the workplace. I strongly believe that everyone has the right to disconnect and recharge. If we don’t manage work / life balance better, we can’t perform at our best. Therefore, it is down to employers and managers to consider how this is handled within an organisations culture.

  • Ultimately, it is important to give employees a clear pathway to challenge situations of perceived unfairness without negative judgment.

What Should employers / managers do if they suspect an employee is Quiet Quitting?

If you suspect that an employee is quiet quitting, you will need to talk to the person involved and try and repair the psychological contract that has been damaged. In order to do this, you will need to:

  • Understand what has happened and the impact to the employee.

  • Be empathetic.

  • Recognise and acknowledge if a mistake or oversight has occurred and what can be done to rectify the matter.

  • Apologise.

We also need to remember that many people fear confrontation and will avoid these types of conversations. If this occurs, encourage the employee to perhaps talk to someone else and explain that the issues can’t be resolved if they don’t explain what has happened and give you an opportunity to put it right.

The Employee Perspective

I understand the temptation of quiet quitting.

Sometimes the thought of having to have that ‘awkward’ conversation with your boss does not feel great. But essentially, quiet quitting does not resolve the issue. You may feel like you have taken a stand, and that might make you feel more in control over the situation. But fundamentally, if left unresolved, the matter itself will not simply go away because you decide to do less within your job.

My advice to all employees is to find the courage to talk to your manager or an HR manager and try to find a solution to what has happened or is happening. Give your boss the opportunity to put things right. Quiet Quitting won’t help in the long run and could lead to poor performance reviews, lower promotion opportunities and you may be viewed as not caring about your job.

Instead of quiet quitting, ask yourself ‘What needs to happen to make this situation better? And how do I achieve that?’.

Quiet Quitting just isn’t the answer.