What is the Great Resignation and Why Should You Care?

Change is one of the many inevitable facets of life. Everything is always changing. Especially in the past two years. The working world is on the brink of change on the level of the initial shift to remote work. More people are prioritizing health, happiness, and family, and employers are becoming too overbearing, overdemanding, and too out of touch. The result is the Great Resignation.

What is the Great Resignation?

The Great Resignation, as the name implies, is a mass resignation of workers. Statistics show that some 4 million people, including 650,000 retail workers, all quit their jobs in April alone. The bulk of these resignations came from white-collar jobs, but the resignations are being felt on every level. It’s particularly evident in “essential” workers forced to work for as little as possible. These people have been the unsung heroes of the pandemic and they’re getting fed up.

The 2021 Work Trend Index from Microsoft shows that over a third (37%) of workers feel their companies are demanding too much. 40% of them are planning to resign this year. That’s nearly half of the global workforce.

Pay isn’t even the driving factor you’d think it might be. Some people are just tired of commuting and losing time driving to work. They want to continue working remotely so they can spend more time with friends and family. Others have just had enough of working digitally and need more social interaction. Others are tired of being abused by customers and employers.

Why Should You Care?

As an employer, you should care because so many people have quit – or plan on quitting – their jobs. There isn’t a labor shortage because there’s no one willing to work, there’s one because no one is willing to work in their current conditions.

Employers can learn from this and do better for their employees. When you give people the attention they want they tend to be happy and faithful employees. The Great Resignation is a sign that it’s time for a change. Employers can either make that change or lose access to the only resource that truly matters – workers.

As an employee, the Great Resignation is significant because it shows you that you aren’t alone. Plenty of other people are going through the same thing as you and considering the same actions as you. You should care because you know you aren’t alone.