Look in the Mirror
Employers describe “quiet quitters” as unmotivated slackers who do the bare minimum and won’t go “above and beyond.”
Employees, meanwhile, have been working 50-plus hours a week, which is affecting their mental health. Work bleeds into the weekends because they need time to catch up and prepare for the week ahead. They are also wondering how “going above and beyond” became an expectation rather than an occasional service.
But what are the solutions? If your culture is company-centric, then your challenge is going to be to understand the “quiet quitters” and find ways to improve processes so that the work still gets done without extra hours being expected.
If your company is employee-centric, then your challenge is going to be to listen to the “quiet quitters” and create an employee resource group think tank to help solve the root issues causing burnout. Employees will tell you which activities could be centralized and/or offloaded. They know how to divide and conquer work among their teams. They know when to say no to customer requests. And they know which work efforts have already been tried and failed.
So, before you judge some of those employees who are starting to limit their work hours, look in the mirror and ask yourself what your organization can do to help get work done efficiently while retaining your valuable workforce.
Source: “‘Quiet Quitters’: Are They Really the Problem?” The Staffing Stream, by Lisa Fox, director of strategic solutions, SIA
Disengaged but Productive
Nearly one-third of workers report decreased job engagement — the commitment and connection they feel to their work — but the shift to remote work spurred by the pandemic may not be the cause.
But even with lower levels of engagement, 82% say their level of effort remains the same or higher.
Source: The Conference Board
Expected increase in healthcare benefit costs in 2023
