Text I: 'Quiet quitting' isn't really quitting
Clocking out at 5 p.m. on the dot, only doing your assigned
daily tasks, limiting chats with colleagues and not working
overtime. These are the distinctive features of "quiet quitting," a
term coined to describe how people are approaching their jobs
and professional lives differently to manage burnout.
The phrase, which isn't actually intended to lead to a
resignation, exploded into the popular lexicon in 2022 when a
TikTok video went viral. The creator, Zaid Khan, said in the video
"I recently learned about this term 'quiet quitting,' where you're not
outright quitting your job, but you're quitting the idea of going
above and beyond." Nonetheless, “quiet quitting” is a misnomer,
at least according to Karen K. Ho, a freelance business and
culture reporter. She said that the term doesn't account for the fact
that people are watching their grocery bills, fuel costs and housing
prices go up, often without so much as a salary increase. "You're
literally stagnating as a result of not earning more, not being
promoted – and that's why a lot of people are leaving jobs," she
completed.
While the words "quiet quitting" are loaded, evoking images
of a slacker or ne'er-do-well for some, others say that the
approach frees up time to spend with family and friends or to take
care of oneself. In short, it's a renewed commitment to life beyond
the workplace. On the other hand, the term “quiet quitting” has
also received criticism, even from those who generally favor the
idea behind it.
However, while the term "quiet quitting" may be a
new invention, the mentality behind it is not. The phrase "work to
rule," for example, describes a labor action in which employees
strictly perform the work laid out in their contract, without taking on
additional work. In 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic triggered a
major economic movement, The Great Resignation, which saw
people leaving their jobs or switching professions in droves, as
they re-evaluated their relationship with work during a lifechanging health crisis.
A May 2022 survey by RBC Insurance suggested that more
than one-third of recently retired Canadians aged 55-75 had
retired sooner than they planned. Another third decided to retire
sooner because of the pandemic. Moreover, Statistics Canada
reported that the third quarter of 2021 saw a 60% increase in job
vacancies compared to pre-pandemic levels in the country.
Both Quiet Quitting and The Great Resignation indicate a
marked cultural shift from the early and mid-2010s when "hustle
culture" paved the way to "grinding" and "girl-bossing" – two ideas
that prioritized work over everything else, with the belief that such
effort made employees more desirable to managers, therefore
helping them climb up the corporate ladder faster and
generating more income.
In addition, it is important to highlight that employees have
been re-evaluating how much time they spend commuting,
working overtime and generally investing in low-pay, low-reward
jobs. It seems they have realized that they work in systems where
they are constantly immersed in a hustle culture – which has been
repeatedly shown to be only beneficial for corporations and their
managers, through bonuses, through increased productivity,
through increased revenue and profits and the like.
Furthermore, some employees are advocating for policies,
benefits and working conditions that strengthen work-life balance.
But critics say it doesn't work as well as it should, with a glaring
loophole that allows employers to take advantage by vaguely
wording their policies.
Adapted from: https://www.cbc.ca/news/business/quiet-quitting-workerdisengagement-1.6560226
Last Updated: August 25, 2022