pull n. – a force drawing someone or something in a particular direction or course of action.
Supply chain issues. COVID-19. The Great Resignation. Quiet Quitting. According to conventional logic, the U.S. labor market is past-due for some relief. Unfortunately, that doesn’t seem to be the case. Last month, U.S. worker productivity levels reached at an all-time low. Shortly thereafter, it was announced that over 70% of economists believe that we’ll be in a recession by mid-2023—if we’re not already in one.
But what does this mean for employers? How do we connect with our current, and potential, workforce while maintaining our competitive edge?
In the age of the Great Resignation, there’s been no shortage of signs that many employees are beginning to look for new opportunities that better align with their priorities. Three fundamental truths remain:
- Burnout is sky high.
- Dissatisfaction is still running rampant.
- Employees are putting life ahead of work and want a company that mirrors that priority.
Let’s get one thing straight: It’s not quitting, they’re just tired.
American workers have had enough.
Enough of their employer’s broken promises, of unhealthy work/life balance, toxic workplaces, being overworked and underpaid—and they aren’t holding back their collective disappointment.
In recent months, many have flocked to TikTok to share their stories of “quiet quitting” and stand in solidarity with their peers. The similarities between this trend and last year’s Great Resignation—a period in 2021 that saw close to 4 million workers leave their jobs each month—are staggering, to say the least. It indicates a clear and present disconnect between many organizations and their own employee experience initiatives. A disconnect that, if left unchecked, could evolve into a larger, potentially more devastating employment branding problem.
For now, at least, most folks aren’t actually quitting their jobs, they’re just choosing something new: themselves.
The answer is probably more complicated than you think, but might surprise you. In fact, it's likely your organization already has a plan, but you might not call it that or follow it with the rigor you know you should. Complex, multi-unit organizations with distributed employees cannot not communicate internally, or they wouldn’t exist. But to what degree is your team’s plan documented, aligned to, executed and measured?
