We Quit
Pulling the plug on unhappy work | 4-min read
As much as I like to feel special, when I quit my job in April, I was just one in a herd of 4 million other Americans who made the same move. More people said “I quit” that month than ever recorded by the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, and the numbers have remained elevated since. I was, in the end, just a data point. But lucky for me (and my ego), that data point turns out to be quite interesting.
What makes this statistic newsletter-worthy isn’t just why so many people are quitting, but what it means for those who don’t and the window of opportunity it opens to change the working world (spoiler: it could mean higher pay).
4 million mic drops
“The Great Resignation,” as one scholar describes the surge, comes at the end of a complicated year at work. Amid an unpredictable pandemic and spikes in unemployment, so many of us spent the last 12 months clinging to our jobs while also finding it harder than ever to keep doing them.
And tellingly, the wave of resignations is happening across industries and income brackets. Many headlines have focused on restaurant, retail, and hospitality workers (who did record the highest quit rates of any sectors), but office workers are close behind by rate and higher in total volume. In sum: it’s everywhere.
What it all means
There are two ways to tell this story.
The most common narrative is a positive one that declares the combination of economic recovery and accelerated job openings has created opportunities for people to leave jobs and upgrade to newer, better ones. This view, shared by many economists, credits a “healthy labor market” (debate for another newsletter) and treats the trend as a cyclical – aka temporary and somewhat predictable -- market force.
However, if you widen the lens, something larger and more systemic comes into view.
It reflects widespread dissatisfaction, unfair working conditions, inadequate wages, and rampant burn-out that transcend sectors and pay brackets. We see headlines of fast-food workers walking out in demand of better pay, Amazon workers forced to pee in bottles, companies having to shut down to deal with exhausted employees (like Bumble). We’re seeing whole groups of people opt out of the workforce entirely, driving (justified) concern over a potential regression in workforce participation among women.
And if you like statistics, as the economists do, consider the pre-pandemic study showing that 50% of workers are unhappy in their jobs; consider that more Americans started their own business in 2020 than any year on record – a sign that more people than ever would rather assume the risk of entrepreneurship than work for another proverbial “man”.
Though economic recovery has created opportunities for upward movement, the “Great Resignation” is also a collective distress signal of problems that have been mounting – a cry that “this isn’t working anymore,” that echoes much louder and longer than a temporary market blip.
Seize the moment
It’s a quitter’s market, but you don’t need to quit your job to reap the benefits. Many argue that it puts more power in the hands of the employed (or seeking employment), as organizations seek to backfill positions and retain talent. It’s a window of opportunity to ask for more of our employers who are eager to retain us, of potential employers who are anxious to hire, and of ourselves (who may want more than the pre-COVID status quo).
It is, very importantly, a moment to raise awareness (and standards) on working conditions in sectors that have failed to provide fair benefits, job security, and pay. And it’s already starting to work. Sectors like retail and hospitality are (finally) recording wage increases; pressure has forced major names from Target and Walmart to Chipotle and Starbucks to raise their base pay.
Through these demands, we help improve organizations and reshape what the next stage of “normal” looks like. And because history and economics tell us that this window of opportunity won’t last forever, it’s important that we act now.
So go forth and ask for more. And if anyone is thinking about quitting and needs some moral (or tactical) support, please reach out – I have a plethora of resources (and my very own quitting story) to offer!
for the curious…
There are so many aspects to quitting that are worth exploring: the stigma our culture has around “giving up,” the strategy (and art) of quitting a job, I could go on. Below are some resources for those of you interested in more:
People Are Walking Away From Jobs That They Say Aren't Cutting It Anymore
NPR | 7-min listen
“If I just quit, what will people say?”
How’s Work? Podcast by Esther Perel | 52-min listen
Mastering the Art of Quitting: Why it Matters in Life, Love, and Work
Book | 272 pages
From Goodreads: “…persistence alone isn't always the answer. We also need to be able to quit to get the most out of life. They reveal simple truths that apply to goal setting and achievement in all areas of life, including love, relationships, and work.”
