BOSTON — The term “quiet quitting” is making the rounds on social media, referring to people who are choosing to stay at their jobs, but doing “just enough” to get by. According to the results of a newly-released Gallup poll taken in June, at least half of all U.S. workers are quiet quitters, and it’s especially true for remote workers, and those under the age of 35.
Hiring firm Robert Half conducted its own survey more recently at the end of August, and found far lower numbers of quiet quitters: Less than 10%.
“We saw 61% are wanting to do even more… want to get ahead and want to be more engaged and they’re what we call high strivers,” said Robert Half Senior District President Bill Driscoll. He says those “high strivers” are taking on more responsibility and looking for a promotion, rather than a way out.
“We need to make sure that we’re doing everything we can as employers to address burnout ,” said Driscoll.
Driscoll says whether it’s quiet quitters or high strivers, companies need to do a better job with both groups working on engagement.
He suggested several ways to increase engagement and decrease burnout:
“Encouraging time off, and making sure that breaks are being taken. Making sure that you’re sharing any resources that your company has: health resources, mental health resources, helplines, those sorts of things. And trying to make it fun! Building the culture, both remotely and in person, I think is really important,” Driscoll recommends.
Driscoll says prioritizing is another important step: Focusing energy on critical projects, not busy work.
Companies also need to stay flexible.
“If your high strivers are working their tails off, and maybe they’re working, you know, unorthodox hours to accomplish that, but they want to go see the soccer game, or they want to go to the dance, or they have something else going on, personally, make sure you’re flexible, and you support them in that way,” Driscoll advised.
His final tips: offer career development and competitive salaries to retain the best talent
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