The pandemic has opened our eyes to many facets of our lives which we seldom introspected before. One of them being the extent to which our work life affects our personal life and overall mental health. Working remotely has allowed us to realise the value of the human aspects of work and how vital it is that the companies we work for invest in them. Employees are experiencing physical or emotional fatigue or, in some cases, both. At a time like this, many are striving for validation and seeking a sense of purpose from their professions. The desire for a social work environment encompassing interpersonal connections with colleagues and managers has increased. Employees want to feel valued by their organisations and managers. And when they are deprived of these things, they resign. This has led to the beginning of what many people are calling ‘The Great Attrition’.
Many organisations fail to understand why their employees are quitting and what they are gravitating towards in doing so. This poses a great risk to businesses in all sectors, as failure to understand and reluctance to invest in creating a more fulfilling work environment for employees may result in a slow, painful end to the business.
40% of employees in a survey conducted by McKinsey said they are at least likely to quit in the next three to six months. 18% of the participants of the survey said their intentions range from likely to almost certain. These statistics were gathered from all five countries McKinsey surveyed — Australia, Canada, Singapore, the United Kingdom, and the United States. These statistics were majorly consistent across a wide spectrum of industries. Furthermore, businesses in the leisure and hospitality sectors were highlighted as the most prone to losing employees.
But all hope isn’t lost, this isn’t an irreparable situation. The solutions may seem complex but, in all honesty, are simple. Companies must make a sincere effort to understand the reasons why employees are leaving and try to take appropriate measures to retain them. Retaining existing talent and providing them with an improved work environment will prove fruitful for the business in the post-pandemic world.
Another interesting aspect about this new wave of ‘The Great Attrition’ is the fact that many people are willing to quit without having another job in the pipeline. Many people have come to the realisation that their mental health comes above running the rat race from one job to another. Professionals are in search of satisfaction and are therefore more willing to explore their other passions instead of following the path to conventional employment. This newfound zeal to embark on the journey to find professional happiness alternatively fuels the fact that otherwise-satisfied employees are also contemplating quitting their 9-to-5 jobs, as their options to explore a career driven by their personal passions continue to expand.
Accepting the fact that the pandemic has drastically changed people’s expectations of their jobs is one of the first steps in reversing the effects of this attrition. Organisations must come up with solutions to better existing working conditions in coalition with their employees. Aggressive policies such as making it mandatory for employees to start coming back to the office are likely to backfire. Therefore, it is of utmost importance that companies regularly survey their employees on what’s going well and what needs to be better to assure them that they are valued and heard. The involvement of employees in helping strategise and implement solutions will help in the creation of a work environment where everybody thrives. The needs of working professionals have changed and they will have reduced tolerance for a job that makes them feel as if they are stagnating.
I spoke to Jerin Babu who works as a program manager for supply operations at an education technology company and simultaneously founded India’s first subscription-based small-scale, limited edition beer company ‘Earth Elixirs’. “I wanted to do something that combined my passion for craft beer with my professional expertise. When I am not working, I am using my spare time to create new recipes. I believe passion and profession can harmoniously coexist” said Jerin.
At the bottom of all this is the simple desire to be treated like a human and not just another cog in the wheel. The working conditions we were subjected to in the pre-pandemic world didn’t seem as troublesome then as they do now, as the past two years have made us all experience a rollercoaster of emotions and experiences we weren’t prepared for. It has made us introspect about what truly matters and many of us have concluded that we must strive for better as the old norm wasn’t working for us.
When the world felt apocalyptic and hopeless, many people sought comfort in their jobs. In the face of uncertainty, routine was comforting and reassuring. However, as we embarked on fulfilling our professional duties to escape from the unknown that loomed around us, we were led to the epiphany that our jobs are flawed. Don’t get me wrong, the aim isn’t to achieve perfection and for our jobs to make us feel that our lives and the world we live in are utopian. The goal is to improve a worn out, flawed model of working that can’t be sustained in the present conditions. The good news here is that most of these flaws are fixable and ‘The Great Attrition’, with combined effort and understanding, can be reversed.
Words by Anithya Balachandran
Cover Photograph via IGNANT, ‘The Art of Waiting’ by Andre Hemstedt & Tine Reimer
