Remember long ago, when we all thought “The Great Resignation” would start to loosen up as we headed towards spring? And remember when a certain Future of Work site called it “The Greatest Resignation” because four-plus million professionals were quitting every month since October of last year? AND, remember when that same site spoke of a “Great Resettling” as these workers began to find a foundation that suited their personal and professional desires?
Of course, we remember. It was just two weeks ago.
The March numbers from the Bureau of Labor Statistics hit last week, and with them, something that collectively made us shake our heads. Over 4.5 million individuals voluntarily left their jobs in March, which is a record thus far since this data was first collected decades ago. (March 2022 to November 2021: “Hold my beer.”)
I said just a couple of weeks ago that there were two pathways for this “Big Quit”: either the numbers would reflect a settling of workers into roles that better suited their desires for flexibility, purpose, etc., or, we’d still be operating in “Great Resignation” mode, continuing to wonder when the tide would finally turn.
The Future of Work Exchange will always remain bullish about “The Great Resettling,” as it reflects exactly how voluntarily-displaced workers will find their calling when the dust figuratively settles…the monkey wrench in that concept, however, is just when the record page of resignations will end. The common refrain, that workers still crave more flexibility, empathy, and purpose, will not change. It doesn’t matter if we’re in the throes of a disruptive COVID surge or in a very awkward period (like we are right now): the collective trauma, experiences, and perspectives going into Year Three of the pandemic will continually translate into workers wanting more and wanting better.
Does that mean a bulk of these workers will join the extended workforce ranks? Absolutely. Does this mean that more and more professionals will become entrepreneurs in a market that, for many tech industries, has become incredibly hot? Yes, of course. Does this mean that those businesses on the backside of those resignations should execute on some self-reflection? 100%, yes.
There’s no one-shot answer to why “The Great Resignation” has become “The Greatest Resignation.” And there’s no firm, calculated timeframe on when we’ll see labor market completely enter a “Great Resettling” phase. All of this means one thing: the changes to 1) the way we work and 2) the workforce itself have become permanent. We’re not going to continue experiencing millions and millions of resignations every month. There’ll be a point in time, which I’m imagining is “soon,” in which those resignations begin to slow…and with it, a newly-resettled workforce that may have finally grasped the flexibility, empathy, purpose, compensation, etc. that they’ve been looking for for so very long.
