The phenomenon of “quiet quitting” – when workers do the bare minimum at their jobs required to stay employed – emerged as one of the great big global workplace trends of 2022. And in 2023, it’s still going strong, perhaps even more so than when the term first slid into our lexicon.  

As writer Alyson Krueger noted in a New York Times article, “for some, [quiet quitting means] mentally checking out from work. For others, it became about not accepting additional work without additional pay.” 

While we don’t always agree on the type of career malaise that’s synonymous with “quiet quitting,” most experienced HR managers or C-suite leaders can agree on a few key things:   

1. Quiet quitting stems from dissatisfaction. If workers are underpaid or unappreciated, they’ll be more likely to mentally check out. 
2. If employees are engaged and happy, they’ll do better work.  
3. If workers love what they are doing, they’ll be present and enthusiastic. 

So how do organizations ensure they’re hiring and retaining engaged, happy workers who love what they do and feel appreciated? And how can they do this without incurring steep expenses? 

While organizations cannot control a newly hired employee’s enthusiasm and engagement long term, there are a few things they can control to show employees that they are valued.  

1. Select employee benefits that are easy to implement and use 

An organization’s employee benefits are more important than ever when it comes to worker engagement, satisfaction and retention—especially with rising out-of-pocket healthcare expenses. The more benefits are aligned with employees’ real needs, the less resentful they’ll feel. For example, benefits that are easy to access (e.g., behavioral telehealth) anytime and anywhere meet workers’ needs for convenience and accessibility. Similarly, offering home screening tools for employees who may feel too busy or overwhelmed to schedule a routine, preventive care checkup is another key way to meet those needs. Reperio’s patented at-home health screening kit, for example, empowers workers to self-screen their blood pressure, BMI, cholesterol levels, blood glucose and other metrics at their convenience (plus, our screening tools can send data over a Bluetooth network to Reperio’s mobile app that processes results and offers assessments and recommendations in 30 minutes or less).   

2. Build flexibility into the workday 

Another thing organizations can control is flexibility, or how agile they are in accommodating workers’ needs. Some examples: 

• Telework, or “hybrid” work policies that enable individuals to work from home one or more days per week;  
• Policies that enable flexible hours, or the ability to make up hours on evenings or weekends;  
• Flexible work/schedule times (e.g., the choice whether to start at 8 a.m., 9 a.m., or even 11 a.m.); 
• For companies with unlimited vacation, encourage time off and set an expectation for a minimum number of days. 

3. Identify gaps in your existing strategy

Employers can also control the wealth and breadth of mental health benefits: Asking employees through surveys about what benefits they’d like could provide insight on what’s missing – and what’s needed to optimize worker happiness. Do employees want more mental health perks (e.g., group therapy) or health and fitness discounts? Would five additional “mental” health days enhance paid time off allowances?  

These ideas are only the beginning, as employers navigate new ways to motivate their workers and improve their quality of life. And while it’s hard to prevent all dissatisfied employees from “quiet quitting,” by engaging with workers and prioritizing their needs and lifestyles, an organization is raising its odds of keeping its most engaged workers happy and productive.  

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