Quiet Quitting: The First Wave

It was last year’s buzz term, “quiet quitting.” It did not mean quitting one’s job — it meant quitting on the culture of working more than necessary. Employees clung to their job title, did the bare minimum, and protected their personal time.

For others, it was a survival technique in the climate of:

• Burnout from working too many hours.
• Being undervalued by their employers.
• The pandemic causing individuals to reassess what work ought to look like in their lives.
• Quiet quitting was a form of soft protest. Rather than quitting, individuals checked out — emotionally disengaged while still receiving paychecks.

 Step in “Resenteeism”

Now we’re seeing the rise of something a little different — resenteeism. This is when employees do stay in their jobs, but they’re not just disengaged; they’re actively unhappy about it.

Imagine showing up every day, feeling trapped, resentful, and vocal (even if passively) about your dissatisfaction. You’re there in body, but your energy is negative.

Resenteeism is fueled by factors like:

• Economic duress — inflation, debt, and fewer opportunities make individuals feel they can’t quit, even when they despise their job.
• Toxic cultures — micromanaging, no recognition, or discriminatory pay instigate resentment.
• Uncertainty — layoffs and unstable markets hold people back in jobs they’d otherwise leave.

Lame Quitting vs. Resenteeism

• Quiet Quitting: A survival tactic. Maintains mental well-being by establishing boundaries.
• Resenteeism: A pressure cooker. People stay, but resentment seeps and brews.

Quiet quitting was withdrawal. Resenteeism is bitterness. Weak quitting is passive resignation; resenteeism is active discontent.

The Human Factor

Resenteeism isn’t so much about people — it resonates across teams and organizations:

• An unhappy employee can demotivate others, spirits sag.
• Customers sense the tension when interacting with disengaged employees.
• Managers are most likely to churn over as discontentment goes viral.
• It’s like having someone come to a family meal who clearly doesn’t want to be there  they change the whole vibe.
• For the employees themselves, resenteeism exhausts them. Rising every morning to show up for work to a location you don’t want to be at, with no choice but to go, can contribute to depression, anxiety, and even physical sickness.

Why This Matters Now

We are living in a time of economic and cultural transformation:

• Job insecurity and inflation cause people to “stick it out.”
• Social media normalizes complaining about dissatisfaction in the workplace publicly.
• Smaller generations crave purposeful employment, flexibility, as much of the workplace lags behind.
• This cocktail of stress makes resenteeism look like the next destination in the office revolution after quiet quitting.

 How Businesses Should Respond

• Listen, Not Punish
  Addressing workers as “negative” won’t fly. Employers need to hear the whys of frustration.
• Address Pay and Fairness
  All too frequently resentment stems from being overworked, underpaid, or unfairly treated. Transparency and fair policies can make a huge difference.
• Invest in Culture
  Humans accept long hours if they feel valued, supported, and respected. Toxicity more than workload is likely the real issue.
• Career Pathways
  Employees who are left without career development opportunities are more likely to resent work. Small steps toward development can limit frustration.
• Mental Health Support
  Supplying support and placing dialogue around burnout and discontent assist in keeping quiet quitting from spilling over into resenteeism.

The Future of Work Attitudes

• Increased resenteeism will occur if fiscal stresses persist, but it highlights inappropriate management practices as well.
• Companies that prosper by offering flexibility, incentives, and fair treatment  will retain and attract the best and brightest.
• Employees, especially Gen Z, are less afraid of griping about poisonous workplaces. They may grit it out for a little while but that resentment is something that businesses can’t afford to ignore.

 Bottom Line

Quiet quitting was all about rebating to survive. Resenteeism is all about being present but resentful and trapped. It’s noisier, more infectious, and perhaps even more poisonous  to workers and organizations as well.

Companies have a choice: deny resenteeism and let it gnaw at culture from the inside out, or confront it with empathy, equity, and actual change.

Because in the end, employees don’t only want a paycheck they want to feel valued, respected, and empowered to succeed.