The great resignation
According to an international Microsoft study conducted in 2021, 41% of the global workforce was considering leaving their employer in 2021. And in the beginning of 2022 the U.S Labor department reported that 4.5 million people voluntarily left their jobs in november 2021. That is the highest number ever, since the government began collecting data 20 years ago. This phenomenon of workers of all ages worldwide quitting their jobs is being referred to as “The great resignation”. But why are they quitting?
For sure a lot of the people leaving are doing so for higher-paying jobs, or just switching positions. But we are also seeing other interesting tendencies as well. The time spent in home offices due to the COVID-19 crisis might have changed the relationship between office workers and their workplaces. We see some employees leaving jobs that require them to work in offices as they have experienced the benefits of remote work. And recruiters say that top talent is no longer interested in companies with an “office-centric culture”. Others are quitting because they have been unhappy with how employers treated them during the pandemic.
It has also been suggested that people have spent time during the pandemic lockdowns to consider their priorities. Which has led to more people finding a stronger sense of agency over how and where they want to spend their time and attention. Some also argue that the Great Resignation is part of a larger movement against employers who ask more of their employees while providing less in terms of work satisfaction.
Simultaneously the option to supplement or replace primary incomes is becoming easier to take, as various tech platforms are providing channels and tools that enable people to turn themselves into businesses. In the US, people make an average of US$10,972 a year from working side-hustles such as teaching, writing blogs/newsletters, renting out their home etc.
Even though this discussion heavily centres around American white-collar workers, it is still interesting to take notes of the changes in attitudes and the effects it could bring employers. Some recruiters are saying that they are currently in one of toughest recruitment markets for talent, ever. This is due to the fact that companies are no longer just competing with each other — but that they’re also competing with everything else people want to do with their lives outside or instead of formal employment.
Sources
The return to the office quandry
