What Employers Should Know About Quiet Quitting and Job Hugging
In recent years, workplace culture has changed significantly. New phrases pop up to describe behaviours and phenomena in the workplace. Phrases like “quiet quitting” and “job hugging” are two distinct, but related, phrases that reflect how employees are coping with stress, uncertainty, and changing expectations in the modern workplace.
For employers, these behavioural changes can surface as performance disputes, constructive dismissal claims, or conflict over workplace expectations. Walker Law’s employment litigation lawyers regularly advise both employers and employees navigating these modern workplace dynamics. But what does “quiet quitting” or “job hugging” actually mean?
What is Quiet Quitting?
Despite what the name of this phenomenon suggests, quiet quitting is not about employees silently quitting their jobs, but rather, it is a label that marks a change in behaviour at work. Quiet quitting reflects doing the bare minimum at work; meeting job requirements without spending any effort, time, creativity, or enthusiasm beyond what is necessary.
For instance, a “quiet quitter” might stop staying late or showing up early to work. They may no longer attend optional meetings or volunteer themselves for new projects. According to a 2023 Gallup report, around 59% of workers around the world self-reported as quiet quitters, and in Canada, that rate increases to roughly two-thirds of workers.
Why do employees quiet quit?
Although there is no clear single reason why workers engage in quiet quitting, a mix of factors is often at play, including stress, burnout, dissatisfaction with compensation, a lack of autonomy, and broader generational shifts in attitudes toward work.[1]
What is Job Hugging?
While quiet quitting is about doing less, job hugging is about holding on to the status quo too tightly. “Job Huggers” are employees who stay in roles they’ve outgrown. This is a problem for employers because while a “Job Hugger” may still perform well at work, they may not necessarily be in ways that best serve their team or organization.
There are various signs of job hugging including increased stress that visibly affects a worker’s mood, a shift in task prioritization where workers focus on completing tasks they excel at rather than those that may be most beneficial to the team or organization, or a general status of stagnation where a worker has clearly outgrown their current role but wishes to stay put.
Why do employees job hug?
Job hugging seems to be a response to uncertainty and fear. In today’s climate of mass layoffs, rising prices, and economic uncertainty, many employees choose to “hug” their jobs tightly out of fear for what comes next. The result is a workforce that feels trapped, anxious, and disengaged.[2]
What Employers Can Do About Quiet Quitting and Job Hugging
Quiet quitting and job hugging can lead to declines in productivity and morale. Naturally, employers will want to address these issues with individual employees. But, before taking action, it’s important to understand the legal implications at play with managing or terminating underperforming employees.
First and foremost, employers should ensure that employee expectations are clearly defined and understood by employees. When employees begin to fall short of their duties, whether due to quiet quitting or job hugging, they should be placed on a performance improvement plan. This plan outlines specific areas of concern and provides tangible goals for an employee to achieve. This plan should also give an employee notice of the consequences of failing to meet the expectations.
Ideally, an employee’s performance would improve under such a plan but where performance doesn’t improve, termination becomes a real option for the employer. Employers should know that a dismissal without cause (and without sufficient notice or pay in lieu of notice) is a wrongful dismissal,[3] which exposes the employer to a potential wrongful dismissal lawsuit.
To defend a wrongful dismissal lawsuit, an employer will have a high bar to meet in proving that the dismissal was “for cause”, and thus, not wrongful. Because of the inherent imbalance of power in employment relationships, courts expect employers to act fairly, communicate expectations clearly, and avoid sudden or arbitrary dismissals. This is where the performance improvement plan, that outlines areas of improvement and consequences for not meeting expectations, becomes a necessary record for employers to have.[4]
If your organization is navigating issues with quiet quitting, job hugging, or workplace disengagement, Walker Law’s employment litigation team can help you set clear policies, manage employee performance, and ensure your actions comply with Ontario’s employment laws.
[1] Why People Quiet Quit: Motivations and Provocations, Odessa S. Hamilton, Psychology Today.
[2] ‘Job Hugging’: Signs Of The Rising Trend And 5 Ways To Address It, Bryan Robinson, Forbes.
[3] Canadian Encyclopedic Digest – Employment Law (Ontario), Katherine L. Wood.
[4] Wood v. Canadian Marconi Co., 1995 CarswellOnt 303, [1995] O.J. No. 624.