You may be familiar with the situation: you would actually like to change your job, but there is just wave after wave of redundancies in your sector rather than new job vacancies. Economic uncertainty, inflation, recession and a lack of promising opportunities are all reasons for “quiet quitting”.
And how does this manifest itself? Employees stay in their positions because they can’t afford to simply quit – and unknowingly put their mental health at risk: dissatisfaction, depression and burnout can be the results of “quiet cracking”. You can read everything you need to know about it here.
What is quiet cracking?
“Quiet cracking” means that employees go about their work in silence, withdraw more and more, and actually only do not resign and stay in their jobs due to economic insecurity.
Frank Giampietro, Chief Wellbeing Officer at the management consultancy EY, describes “quiet crackers” as employees who are “present” and dutifully perform their tasks, but who no longer thrive due to a lack of motivation. Hiring freezes and increasing redundancies have led to many people feeling trapped in their situation not by choice, but due to a lack of better alternatives.
Why is quiet cracking on the rise?
According to a study by EY, 28% of employees are reportedly no longer motivated at work, and only 24% of the 2,000 people surveyed are completely satisfied with their work situation – even though 93% are convinced that they make an important contribution to the company’s success.
Quiet cracking could prove to be an increasingly serious problem, especially among younger Gen Z and millennial employees: According to the EY study, only 33 percent of them are still satisfied, compared to over 50 percent in 2023. This shift is alarming and is only confirmed on a global level: According to the analysis and consulting firm Gallup, global employee engagement fell from 23% to 21% in 2024 – the second decline in five years after 2020.
Decreased employee engagement results in production losses of 438 billion US dollars for the global economy – and fuels a vicious cycle: due to economic losses, salary increases and promotions are suspended, training and wellness programs are cut, and employees are exposed to more stress and “quiet hiring”. The result (once again): “quiet cracking” as many cannot simply quit in the current economic climate.
Frank Giampietro sees a need for action on the part of managers in particular: instead of reacting to employees’ sensitivities with mistrust, they should support them before they experience a complete mental breakdown.
But why are people unhappy at work? There are many reasons for this, but the majority of respondents cite a lack of appreciation as the biggest problem. Employees often have the feeling that their work, which they actually really enjoy, is not seen – and that they are unable to develop sustainably due to a lack of positive feedback.
They then increasingly have the feeling that they and their work are irrelevant, their motivation drops accordingly and their attention and willingness to perform noticeably diminishes. However, they don’t show this to the outside world – and not even to their manager: they are much more likely to remain committed and do their work more than satisfactorily, but internally they feel trapped in their unsatisfactory position. Hello, hamster wheel – hello, burnout.
What you can do about it?
Do you have the feeling that, as an employee, you are well on the way to “quiet cracking”? It’s not nice, but it’s not hopeless either. To put a stop to the loss of motivation and dissatisfaction (and avoid having to look for a new job straight away), it’s worth approaching your manager – because they probably won’t even know how you’re quietly struggling.
Ask for a personal meeting and individual feedback. Tell them openly and honestly that the appreciation you have received does not match your work performance. This requires a fair amount of courage – but it can be worth it. Because all too often you can only demand what you have clearly communicated.
At the same time, managers should adopt a new approach to appreciation: it’s not just the big successes that should be praised, but everyday activities are also worthy of (positive) feedback. At the same time, the productivity of the team should be encouraged and emphasised – and in such a way that it reaches everyone. This is the only way to nip “quiet cracking” in the bud: by listening to employees and taking their fears and concerns seriously – and thus indirectly encouraging, motivating and spurring them on to further team and individual successes.
A version of this article originally appeared on GLAMOUR (Germany).
