'That's really discouraging to top performers,' she added. Workers came away from all of this feeling like the connection between working hard and being rewarded was broken, Pollak said. Existing employees were often worked to the point of burnout, newbies with less experience were brought on at a higher wage and employers overlooked things that could have cost workers their jobs in the past. Firings and layoffs reached historic lows. Then the economic winds shifted just months later, and companies were suddenly desperate to hire.

Nearly 20 million people were laid off in a matter of weeks as the pandemic took hold, regardless of whether they had strong work ethics, good performance or loyalty to a company. 'I no longer think that.' Major swings in the job market led to major ennuiĪn economic ennui has settled in among workers after the experiences of the last few years, said Julia Pollak, chief economist with ZipRecruiter, and that ennui is showing up in the numbers. 'I used to think having a job would make me secure,' said Bouser. Still, he said that in his short time in the American workforce, where he'd already been laid off from another job at the beginning of the pandemic, he knew this is just how it goes with companies. His boss at the car rental company where he made $25 an hour informed him his pay was going down to $13.50 an hour, without any explanation.īouser learned that all of his colleagues had seen their wages basically cut in half, and at a moment when companies were desperate for workers and pay was rising across the country. In the end, this could have a profound effect on the country's well-being, according to economists.įor Brian Bouser, 22, questions about how much effort to put in at work began when he received a text in the middle of art history class at the University of Louisville last year. workforce is not as productive as just a year ago - it seems people are not producing as much in the hours between clocking in and clocking out each day. Brian Bouser, 22, says his recent experiences in the workforce have prompted him to go into business for himself.Īll of the quiet quitting rolling through the country is starting to make some real economic noise.ĭata now shows that the U.S.

Brave health careers