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Six Ways To Engage The “Quiet Quitters” In Your Organization

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Last Updated on February 8, 2023 / Employee Relations

Image of a bored woman working at a laptop depicting a quiet quitter

One thing is clear as we look into this new year – employee engagement must remain a top priority. As employers are still weathering the storm of The Great Resignation, which according to Forbes hit its peak in March 2022 with over 4.5 million Americans quitting their jobs, there was another storm brewing after. This new storm is a more challenging beast as it can sneak up on you – a workforce of Quiet Quitters. Employers and HR professionals must actively pursue the challenge to engage the quiet quitters head-on so as not to lose them altogether.

Made famous in a July 2022 TikTok post with #quietquitting, the term does not actually involve employees quitting. The term generally describes maintaining work-life boundaries to reduce burnout. It applies to employees who are getting the job done and only doing what is necessary for the tasks at hand. They are not insubordinate, yet they are not stepping up to take on extra projects. They are not volunteering for tasks and don’t reach out to help coworkers or others in the workplace. They offer limited extra effort resulting in decreased engagement, which according to Gallup is at its lowest level in almost a decade.

So, what can you do? We suggest the following six steps to engage the quiet quitters in your workforce.

1. Start at the top

Are your leaders engaged? Employees cannot be engaged if their managers and leaders are not. Human Resources professionals must play a significant role in collaborating and partnering with business leaders to first keep them engaged. As business leaders struggle with the disengagement of staff and record turnover, HR should work with the leaders to provide support and recognition and focus on improving the health of the business AND the health of its leaders.

2. Build rapport to open the lines of communication

Let’s face it…no one is happy at work ALL of the time, and that is not the expectation. Creating trusting relationships that allow for open and honest communication without retribution will result in open dialogue to more effectively deal with the “not-so-good” times. Fostering open lines of communication and authentic caring relationships with your staff will result in increased trust. They will feel more comfortable talking with you about their concerns and allow the chance to address issues before the employee feels their only course of action is to leave.

We have heard for years that employees quit their managers, not their jobs. In a recent GoodHire survey, Horrible Bosses: A Survey of the American Workforce, employees note their desire to have a manager that is open and honest in all areas of employment, while only 44% say their manager is open and honest.

Now is the time to create a rapport with your staff so they are comfortable talking with you. Here are a few simple steps to do that:

  • Take the time to listen to concerns and issues.
  • Show empathy and help your team members solve the problems they are experiencing.
  • Follow up and be consistent. Have meaningful conversations either as part of a regular one-on-one cadence, monthly check-in, or even through informal touch bases.

These activities will open up communication and allow for the opportunity to address work-life balance, establish work boundaries, and encourage employee health and wellness. The worst thing we can do as leaders is to be apathetic about our employee’s concerns and not provide support for potential resolution.

3. Respect employees’ time away from work

From what we’ve learned about the preferences of a multi-generational workforce, work-life balance is among the top reasons people choose to both join and stay at a company. Employees require time off to recharge, and this time away from work must be left uninterrupted and “work-free.” Here are suggestions on how to make that happen:

  • Explain your work style and assure your employees that they do not have to follow your same style. For example, if you like to work late into the evening, be sure your staff knows that a response is not necessary or expected to your late-night emails.
  • Touch base with your staff prior to time off to assure backups are in place. Discuss how emergencies should be handled and let the employee determine how/when they could be interrupted if it were deemed absolutely necessary.
  • Review your own deadlines and needs on a daily basis in advance of the end of the day to avoid reaching out after work hours with urgent requests you may have forgotten.
  • Work together with your staff to determine how urgent needs should be handled.

4. Ask first and provide realistic expectations

Employees may be willing to work some extra hours as needed, but when it is abused or happens regularly, it could lead to quiet quitting. If you have a need, let them know what the need is, how long it will last, and provide realistic expectations of the request. Ask for participation and make sure it does not happen all of the time.

If another coworker or manager is requesting work with an unreasonable deadline or something outside of their normal work hours, advocate for your employee. If appropriate, consider compensation for the extra effort. If not pay, consider some type of recognition that will reward staff for work outside of their normal job duties.

5. Assess and address talent needs (and wants).

As staffing becomes critical, the use of performance evaluations and development tools, succession plans, and cross-training measures will ensure you are evaluating your employee’s interests and engaging them in the things that make them “tick.” These tools and conversations will help drive you and the employees to activities that they are interested in while filling business needs. This can also help to engage the quiet quitters. These discussions allow for honest feedback on career progression and the skills necessary for continued promotion within the company leading to increased engagement and retention.

6. Foster a flexible and caring culture

HR and business leaders need to foster and encourage a culture open to flexibility, diverse viewpoints, and giving grace to others. In addition, the organization must create an environment where employees are comfortable to express concerns and dissatisfaction as well as have the skills to manage the potential resulting conflict. To engage the quiet quitters, you must be aware, stay aware, and take action as necessary.

It is important to realize that quiet quitting does not really start quietly. Employees’ concerns about workload, job duties, and even lack of recognition are typically mentioned to team leads, supervisors, or managers in the workplace long before they become serious concerns. These unaddressed concerns then morph into what we see as quiet quitting. Take the time to be engaged and listen to employees’ concerns and issues. This simple step and many of the actions above will work to decrease the number of employees in your workplace who are quietly quitting and drive a more engaged workplace.

Regardless if we’re talking about Quiet Quitting, the Great Resignation, the Big Quit, or the Great Reshuffle, employees want to be engaged. Sometimes disengagement results in doing the bare minimum until a new opportunity comes along inside the company, and sometimes it results in the active pursuit of another external position. Regardless of the outcome, this movement is requiring an evolution of the role of human resources and our leaders in the organization more than ever. My best advice is to support your staff and your company by focusing on employee needs, health, and well-being, and be sure you are genuinely listening.

Thank you to Patti Dunham, MBA, MA, SPHR, SHRM-SCP, Director of HR Solutions for contributing to this article.

Chances are, your organization is experiencing quiet quitting whether you know it or not. One way to understand if your employees are engaged and what you could do to address their concerns is to ask them. Clark Schaefer Strategic HR can conduct an employee survey to assess the level of engagement of your workforce, assess your areas of strength and potential improvement, and create an action plan to address key issues. Contact us to learn more.