Quiet quitting among new-generation employees in poor and developing countries: implications for employers

‘Quiet quitting’ has become a burning issue, particularly for employee and employer relations. According to Gallup, 62% of employees worldwide are quiet quitting, implying they do the bare minimum at the workplace just to get by. 

There is no single definition of quiet quitting. Some scholars define it as putting in limits and refraining from accepting extra responsibilities, while others simply refer to it as the process of not exceeding expectations. However, most scholars and practitioners agree that quiet quitting does not always necessarily mean an employee is quitting their job. 

While ‘quiet quitting’ may sound like an employee is merely doing the job as specified by the job description, the issue goes deeper than that.

Quiet quitting makes employees disengaged in the workplace, which has a negative impact on individual morale, organisational culture and performance. We can refer to quiet quitting as a process in which employees remain physically present in their roles within the company but mentally withdraw. As a result, employees tend to avoid participating in new projects and rarely share fresh ideas. Moreover, quiet quitting often results in employees dragging their colleagues down with them. 

The symptoms of quiet quitting start with employees ignoring employers’ orders or instructions via email, SMS or phone call during and outside of work hours. Further issues, such as not speaking up in meetings, frequent absences, withdrawing from teams and missing deadlines, are considered to be the major signs of quiet quitting. 

The causes of quiet quitting

Although quiet quitting has existed for a long time and will go on forever, its recent surge among new-generation employees has made employers reconsider their way of behaving with, assigning projects to and leading employees.

Quiet quitting could be beneficial in terms of relaxation for employees, particularly those who work in companies with toxic work environments. In addition, the prevalence of quiet quitting stems from widespread exploitation by employers, who particularly exploit inexperienced staff. 

The younger workforce aspires to implement innovative methods for completing tasks, yet their superiors discourage them from doing so, leading to psychological strain among staff

Many employers around the world, especially in poor and developing countries, exhibit a negative attitude towards new employees, assigning them additional and unpleasant responsibilities. As a result, many new employees lose their enthusiasm for work and begin quietly quitting. To protect themselves from exploitative employers or bosses, the new generation of employees has begun to practice quiet quitting. In this regard, most employers can’t deny that they have a hand in igniting quiet quitting among this generation.

Moreover, computer-based virtual jobs based in Western countries have also ignited quiet quitting among new-generation employees in poor and developing countries. Normally, new-generation employees are tech-savvy; therefore, they can easily start working on virtual platforms as freelancers, staying free from the tremendous pressures and unethical exploitation of their local employers.