Insights: Gallup’s State of the Global Workplace 2023 Report
Gallup’s recent State of the Global Workplace Report presented data and reflections from workplace and job market polls conducted in 2022. Among the recurring themes of the report was that of “quiet quitting,” the term Gallup used to categorize workers who are psychologically disengaged from work. These workers are physically present and are probably low-mid tier producers, but they lack a few of the fundamental components of a healthy, engaged, sustainable relationship to work.
Surprisingly, 59% of global workers fit this category (52% in the US). This means that over half of the global workforce is “quiet quitting.”
Interestingly, 84% of these employees could identify exactly what they would change about their workplace and narrow it down to one of these three categories:
Engagement/Culture: 41%
Pay/Benefits: 28%
Wellbeing/Work-Life Balance: 16%
It is striking that 41% of quiet quitters said they would actually be more engaged in their current workplace if some sort of internal shift occurred within that workplace. It’s less about compensation or flexibility, and more about the actual experience of coming into work and, well, doing the work. This means that if given the opportunity, they wouldn’t ask for more money, a new title, or two remote days a week, but rather that the work they’re already doing and the office they’re already in become more meaningful.
Gallup CEO Jon Clifton makes a singular suggestion from the 2022 data which very much stems from this key insight regarding quiet quitting: change the way that people are managed.
Leaders set the tone for office culture and one’s perceived value of their contributions within a company come. Clifton suggests that quiet quitters are actually a company’s “most winnable employees,” and that connecting with and coaching these individuals can completely shift a company’s day-to-day culture, employee retention, and overall performance.
Simply put, there is a distinct connection between leadership and employee engagement, and the majority of the workforce is disengaged.
We believe that working for a leader you are excited to serve is one of three key components to a thoroughly aligned career opportunity. Gallup’s findings support this claim and issue a firm reminder to leaders and managers to lead thoughtfully and with a coaching mindset.
—Gabe Salamida, Recruiting Analyst