Quiet Quitting is a term recently popularized on TikTok. While the phrase is new, the idea of disconnecting ones identity from their employment is familiar to many. Current enthrallment with this concept is not surprising given the ongoing deterioration of the modern work structure.
Before Quiet Quitting Was a Thing
Back in 2003 I was working for a company that administered retirement plans. After my first year of working there I had my annual review. It was glowing. And then I got my raise…barely a cost of living increase. I was so angry. I had worked so hard and was basically being told I was not valued. Employers can provide all the words of praise they like, but lets be real…people work primarily for the money. If I was choosing to donate my time it would not be to a for-profit company.
Back when this happened I made a decision. During my year of working for the company I had become much more skilled and efficient. Apparently my employer was unwilling to reward that. My salary was fixed. So, if I was not getting more money I would work fewer hours, thereby giving myself an effective increase in hourly pay.
Quiet Quitting was an unknown term two decades ago, but essentially that is what I did. I put limits around my engagement in my job while biding my time until the circumstances were right to make a change in my employment.
The Hard Work Fallacy
We are generally taught that hard work pays off. Each generation is told that they should study hard and get good grades, go to college, and they will eventually be rewarding with a good paying job.
Sadly, each generation eventually learns the truth: that hard work alone does not ensure financial success. There are so many other factors involved:
- Individual identity/privilege (race, gender, social class, sexual orientation, physical appearance, health, etc.)
- Inherent skill and personality traits
- Personal and family connections
- Current Economic conditions
- Location
- Luck
Hard work is just one factor in an individual’s success. As I type this essay, I can hear all of the arguments about how people are lazy and just expect things to be handed to them. But, that is not what I am talking about (and is a whole other discussion). My point is that multiple people can exert the same effort and have drastically different results. As this well known illustration depicts, people can experience equality without experiencing equity.
My experience while working in retirement plan administration was just one of many similar situations throughout my life that have made me aware of the teachings v. the realities of financial success. I have seen those with learning disabilities work twice as hard as their classmates for a lower grade. I know women who have returned to the office six weeks after giving birth be scolded by bosses for their low energy, saying they must not be serious about their job. The reality of our society is that people do not gain wealth simply through determination.
What is Quiet Quitting?
The recent conversation on “Quiet Quitting” has me fascinated. Quiet quitting is not about literally quitting your job. There are many different definitions and interpretations of this term. I am writing with the understanding that quiet quitting is about quitting the hustle and giving up on the idea of going above and beyond. If you are wondering about the terminology, see this NPR piece on The economics behind ‘quiet quitting’ – and what we should call it instead.
Many have been discussing quiet quitting as adaption of work-to-rule. I would disagree, however, as work-to-rule is generally explained as a labor practice intended to slow production by performing the job only as stated in the contract and nothing additional. But, participants of quiet quitting don’t seem to motivated by slowing production. They are not trying to prove a point or “stick it to the man.”
Rather, I see the quit quitting as more personal. Of course, the personal is political (h/t Carol Hanisch) but those engaged in quit quitting often have neither the platform nor the capacity to engage in an aggressive political movement. People are exhausted. This quiet resistance is a quest for self preservation.
Why Now?
For the skeptical boomers or other contrarians who will argue that they worked hard without complaint (insert eye roll), economic and employment conditions have changed. Since the 1980s pay has failed to keep pace with increases in cost of living. We have experienced over a decade of rapidly increasing hustle culture in which work boundaries become less defined and enforceable. We are emerging from a multi-year pandemic while heading into a recession. Technological advances have made us more aware of the inequalities worldwide and within our own communities.
Quiet quitting is simply people saying enough is enough. They are refusing to devote all of their time and energy to jobs and companies that do not adequately reward them or value them. Folks are finally implementing boundaries within their work lives.
The Debate Around Quiet Quitting
The arguments against quiet quitting seem to fall into two categories. One is the old “people are just lazy” diatribe that does not, in my opinion, really warrant much of a response. If the majority of people are lazy, then maybe we need to investigate the meaning of “lazy” since it is clearly a societal problem rather than an individual failing.
The second argument is that employees who are quiet quitting are really hurting themselves. Articles, such as this CNBC piece, contend that quiet quitting is bad for you because you will be lacking in motivation and initiative. Your job will be even less engaging and you will be hurting your chances for advancement.
The fallacy with this argument is the premise that these people would get ahead at work if they maintained their motivation and dedication. But, people are opting out of the hustle because they have seen the futility. When it has been made clear that your effort will not be proportionately rewarded with raises and promotions then making less effort is a rational response.
Those who argue against quiet quitting generally counter that employees should be appealing to management for improvements. I assert that the majority of those who quietly quit likely have already tried other approaches first. Quiet quitting implies that you have formerly made extensive efforts and have decided not to do so anymore. Otherwise you are not quitting, you are maintaining the status quo.
I suspect many employees have tried approaching their bosses in search of improvements. And the employees were told by their employer that their hands were tied due to decreasing revenue, the labor shortage, the recession, etc. Quiet quitting is unlikely to be an individuals first response to frustration. Instead, it is the result of long periods of being overworked, underpaid, and generally undervalued.
Quiet Quitting Can Be Nuanced
For those considering quiet quitting, let’s recognize that it need not be black and white. It is not a choice between running at full speed until retirement and totally checking out. People can put boundaries around their work hours while still taking care in their work.
When we pace ourselves, rather than work frantically, we often accomplish as much or more because of our improved focus. Being more selective of projects may mean someone spends their time and energy demonstrating their skills rather than doing invisible, uninspiring work. Taking a step back in one’s current role does not mean they can’t seek out other, more rewarding jobs in the future.
A Workplace Problem, Not a Generational Failing
Let’s move away from the dialogue that workers, particularly younger workers, are lazy or spoiled. Instead this can be viewed as an opportunity to address the current crisis in the modern workplace. After decades of declining work conditions, coupled with lower real compensation, it is no wonder that employees are exhausted, frustrated, and furious. This Forbes article, Quiet Quitting: The Real Story (Don’t Blame Gen Z), provides some helpful suggestions for how companies and managers can take ownership of the problem and initiate changes.
There is a saying that people don’t leave a job, they leave a boss. Similarly, people are not quietly quitting their jobs. They are divesting from the quiet fleecing of modern corporate culture.
The modern narrative is that everyone should find a job that fulfills their passion and should devote themselves to it without reserve. The recent press regarding quiet quitting highlights these shortfalls in the present-day workplace. We continuously receive the message that if we work hard and follow our passion we will be financially rewarded and intellectually fulfilled. Sadly, this is not reality for most. The contemporary economic and social structures are not designed to allow everyone to succeed. Recognizing this reality may help us to organize our lives and our priorities in ways that best benefit us rather than the prevailing structures. Often taking a step back at work can help people to replenish their energy and reassess their goals.