Why Gen Z and millennials are soft quitting
By Jenesy Gabrielle Burkett Fox
Soft quitting, also known as quiet quitting, emerged in 2020 on social media. The term was used to describe the phenomenon of employees putting less effort into their jobs. While employees still complete the required qualifications of their positions, soft quitting entails employees pulling back from additional work such as getting in early, staying late, taking on additional tasks that aren’t actually part of their job. There has been an increase in soft quitting since 2020.
From the perspective of the employee, many employees were required to do more work for the same pay or even pay cuts. Many companies experienced increased layoffs and hiring freezes at the beginning of COVID-19 while expecting the same level of company wide output which of course requires more of each employee.
This compounded with the high rate of inflation in the U.S. without equal or greater increases in pay — it is understandable that many workers aren’t as willing to take on additional responsibilities without appropriate compensation. In the years since the beginning of the pandemic, priorities for many people have shifted. Rather than prioritizing moving up professional ladders, people are prioritizing personal fulfillment and time with loved ones.
From the perspective of the company, COVID-19 spelled many procedural and financial uncertainties that companies weren’t prepared to face as swiftly as they were forced to. Paired with decreased productivity and motivation from their workforce, soft quitting is an alarming prospect for employers who have gotten comfortable demanding more of employees than they’re willing to give. For the employer, soft quitting means paying the same wages for a reduced output even though that output matches the written requirements of the position.
Since the term was coined, soft quitting has been used colloquially to describe a tool for professionals rather than simply a state of not overworking. Soft quitting can be used to describe a professional strategy where employees quietly search for other jobs as their current positions become unsustainable. Whether that is due to a company’s resistance to provide raises, upward mobility, non-wage benefits or overworking their employees, employees are by and large less willing to put up with poor treatment in their jobs.
Main photo by MART PRODUCTION / Pexels
