How Did Quiet Quitting Get So Loud?

Is quiet quitting a new sort of resistance or learnt helplessness? Does it point to weak employees or leadership? Is it the spirit of our times or a new way to call an old problem? 2 HR leaders weigh in.

When content creator Zaiad Khan first posted about quiet quitting on social media, no one could have predicted the huge workplace trend it sparked. Fuelled by pandemic burnout, ennui and economic uncertainty, quiet quitting almost seems to be the zeigeist of our times – a sort of passive-aggressive defiance to hustle culture.

Alex Png, Chief People Officer at Intrepid Group Asia however points out that employee disengagement is not a new issue. It has always been a problem human resources contend with, especially because of the societal pressure to stay in a role for a stipulated period before moving on.

Nonetheless, Png notices that quiet quitting is becoming more common today. Due to the uncertain economic climate, unhappy employees are more likely to hold on to their jobs rather than resign. This is brought into sharper focus because of the greater awareness around the topic, and the new physical and viral platforms such as TikTok where disengaged employees may share their views, he notes.

The Problem With Quiet Quitting

“Whether disengagement is passive or active, what matters is if the said employee is creating a circle of disengagement around them. Companies should take note of such circles forming and take proactive measures to address them,”

- Alex Png, Chief People Officer at Intrepid Group Asia

One thing’s for sure, when employees consistently put in the bare minimum at work, it is unhealthy for any company. However, this chronic apathy is particularly toxic for start-ups where initiative, adaptability and a can-do attitude are vital.

 “Quiet quitting is worse than someone actually quitting because when someone actually quits, at least you can find a replacement for the role,” said Jerviel Lim, Head of People and Culture at Tatsu Works, a web3 gaming startup.

 Moreover, defining this apathy as quiet quitting has cast it as a new sort of resistance. Left unchecked, it can spread within the organisation like a cancer.

 A Gen-Z-er who spoke on the condition of anonymity agrees: “If the group of quiet quitters are my peers, it can be very discouraging. I might begin to question my degree of empowerment in the role, as well as my significance to the project,” he shares.

 This is why it is important for leaders to understand the issue and nip it in the bud. “Whether disengagement is passive or active, what matters is if the said employee is creating a circle of disengagement around them. Companies should take note of such circles forming and take proactive measures to address them,” said Png.

Not Just A Strawberry Problem

 “For most of the quiet quitters I have come across, the real trigger came from disempowerment and suppression when a capable and competent employee’s opinions are not heard,”

- Anonymous GenZ-er

It is a common generalisation that quiet quitting only takes place among the younger generation because of a lack of resilience or sense of entitlement. While Png notes that it tends to affect Gen-Zers, he observes that it is common for some senior management positions as well.

 “At two ends of the experience spectrum, the expectation to make an impact, make changes, and achieve the results they want in an environment they like can exceed the reality of what they are getting into. Patience runs thin, and they may start to feel trapped. With that mindset seeding in, quiet quitting can soon follow,” he explains.

 While it is tempting to dismiss this as a strawberry generation issue, this does not paint an accurate picture. “Nobody comes into a company trying to be a toxic worker. Employers have to take some responsibility,” says Lim.

 “If you have just one person quiet quitting, it may be episodic. But if many people are quiet quitting, there may be something wrong with the leadership team, workload or processes, which may require employees to spend a lot of time going through exhausting hoops and red tapes for example,” he adds.  

 A Gen-Z-er we spoke with adds: “For most of the quiet quitters I have come across, the real trigger came from disempowerment and suppression when a capable and competent employee’s opinions are not heard,” he shares.

How To Nip It In The Bud

 “Leaders need to understand their employee’s career goals, give them small milestones that build confidence, and set them up for success rather than just dumping a million-dollar project on them,”

- Jerviel Lim, Head of People and Culture at Tatsu Works

“The fact of the matter is when someone is quiet quitting, it’s already too late. Because I believe that along the way, unhappy employees have been sending signals that they are tired, burnt out, disengaged and don't find the work meaningful,” Lim notes.

However, he suggests leaders talk to their employees to find out the reasons they are quiet quitting and if factors such as stressful workload, unrealistic timelines, difficult bosses or difficult teammates were involved. “We are talking about people here and I think the most powerful thing you can do is to go to them and hear their stories,” he says.

He suggests regular one-on-one check-ins to understand employees’ career goals, build camaraderie and pick up any signals of disengagement early to remove psychological or work-based roadblocks.

Lim also believes it is important for leaders to have realistic expectations. “There is nothing wrong with giving up-and-coming stars more stretched tasks or an expanded job scope to earmark them as part of the management team, but pacing is also important. Leaders need to understand their employee’s career goals, give them small milestones that build confidence, and set them up for success rather than just dumping a million-dollar project on them,” he says.

Another point to note is that when it comes to the younger generation, it is often not about the money. “What they are looking at is whether this is worth their time. Besides empowering people to do their work, leaders need to create meaningful tasks for them, let them see how that task connects to the greater objective and the goal, and trust them to do the work instead of micromanaging them,” he suggests.

Perhaps it is this sense of purpose and connection to the greater objective that makes quiet quitting less common in start-ups – indeed some founders we spoke to share that the quiet quitting trend has not affected their teams. In fact, one Gen-Z-er who admits to quiet quitting at a large corporation stopped as soon as he moved to a start-up because of the culture of empowerment. 

Additionally, the fast-paced and outcome-driven culture of start-ups not only makes quiet quitting immediately noticeable, but also completely unsustainable for both the company and employee.

Will Quiet Quitting Backfire On Employees?

“If it doesn’t work out, they should take real action and move towards quitting. Because when they quiet quit, they are just wasting their own time, and time is short,”

- Jerviel Lim, Head of People and Culture at Tatsu Works

While quiet quitting is often triggered by unhealthy company cultures or leadership styles, employees also need to take some responsibility for their own career and try to make things work out.

“I think quiet quitting is a kind of learned helplessness where you declare that you are helpless about the situation, but you’re not. Sometimes, it's just about going in to your leader and saying ‘Do you have a minute because I'm stressed out’,” says Lim.

Even though quiet quitting seems to enable employees to take back some control in a bad work situation, Lim also suggests that it is often self-sabotaging. 

“I understand why some people quiet quit, especially if they have tried this before to no effect and feel like they can’t get out of the hamster wheel,” he adds. “In such cases, I think they should ask themselves why they want to remain in this hamster wheel for a long time if they are not interested anymore,” he suggests.

“I think individuals should be very cognizant not to be so helpless and take proactive steps to improve their work situation. If it doesn’t work out, they should take real action and move towards quitting. Because when they quiet quit, they are just wasting their own time, and time is short,” he says.