Quiet Quitting vs. Loud Quitting – Is It Happening to You?

For that matter, have you even heard of those terms? The pandemic remote-work environment has resulted in reluctance to return to work on the part of some employees for whom return-to-work (RTW) is mandated. How they handle it can have a dramatic effect on your office environment.  

Per Paycor, there are five basic reasons employees quit: 

Burnout, Fear of a “Dead-End” Job, Life Overtakes Work, A “Pandemic Reset,” and Bad Bosses. 

Two potential, different negative employee reactions to one or more of the above are the following: 

Loud quitting refers to employees who are actively disengaged and dissatisfied with their jobs, and are airing their grievances. They may complain directly to family and coworkers or on social media sites. These employees do less than the bare minimum at work and may even refuse a manager’s request. 

Quiet quitting occurs when employees reduce their work participation down to the bare minimum. They often stop interacting with colleagues and managers, and show less enthusiasm at work. While they may still fulfill their job duties, their lack of engagement signals a withdrawal from the workplace, often in response to feeling undervalued, overworked, or disconnected from the company’s mission. 

Loud quitters may exhibit behavioral changes, performance decline, reduced communication (vertically and laterally) and increase conflicts with supervisors or co-workers; quiet quitters are less obvious. 

Beyond the 5 general reasons given above, loud quitters may be experiencing (1) a lack of work-life balance, (2) uninspiring leadership, (3) lack of clarity in goals, (4) inadequate compensation and benefits, and (5) lack of room or opportunity for growth. 

Remedies available to management/supervision include such things as encouraging personal contact among employees and supervisors, e.g., with informal socials (TGIF’s), meetings about other than just business, encouraging employee feedback (formally and informally), having an open-door policy, discussing career aspirations, recognizing/rewarding outstanding performance, etc. Crucial is acting on meaningful feedback. Just filing it or giving it mere lip service is worse than doing nothing.