Funny and strange that the article came from The Irish Times. I live in Ireland, and foreign nationals love to work here because of more laidback working culture. This is not "quiet quitting" in the Irish context, it's "as long as all your work is done, you can do whatever the fuck you want."
I have culture shock hearing from others who worked abroad and say how toxic the work environments are in some places. I had co-workers from Spain and Portugal say you can get pressured to work on weekends, or do tasks outside of working hours. Verbal abuse and shouting also happens more frequently.
I worked on one of the largest Portuguese tech companies, it was kinda dependent on the business area. In the telcos department I barely had to do any overtime, it was only for emergencies. My colleagues in the banking department, however, wouldn't ever see the light of day. They arrived before sunrise and left long after sunfall. Projects were submitted at a loss to in the hope of netting future projects. Developers were supposed to work overtime to compensate this... If you refused to work overtime your carreer would have end at that company.
I love the desperate calls. But not instantly, you get them like a week later, every single time. Sometimes they schedule a super important meeting where they HAVE TO talk to you and just cancel it a day or two before it because they realize it's futile.
This has got to be made by the same type of shitheads who churn out clickbait excrement every five minutes, in a different section of the clickbait excrement factory, opposite side of where they churn out "Physicist Brian Cox's terrifying reveal - CERN at Switzerland unlocked demon forces, world's end by 2025".
Or you're being trolled and got those big red shiny buttons pushed.
I see a lot of people complaining about the term "quiet quitting." In this thread there are people saying that that's exactly what they want in a job, that that's what they've been doing since before the term existed, etc..
I'm curious what other succinct terms people would use to describe the act of doing the bare minimum and not engaging beyond what is required and asked for.
I'm asking because I also dislike the term "quiet quitting", and I know such an activity has existed forever. At the same time it does seem useful because I can't think of a succinct way to describe what it explicitly describes. In the past it seems like such a behavior was implicit, but with modern "engagement" and "hustle" and "110%" work culture, it seems like we need a more explicit term.
So, is there another term we can use that people don't hate as much?
That implies malice though, which I don't like. What's malicious about doing exactly what we agreed I'm paid to do, nothing more, and leaving when the whistle blows? In a job market where promotions are a pipe dream and equitable raises not far from it, why should I waste my time trying to impress someone that won't reciprocate?
Quiet quitting is actually listed as a subheading on the work-to-rule Wikipedia page I linked, so I guess it's the non-malicious variation of your standard work to rule protest. If you look at the See Also section, there's some interesting related things. I think the Chinese Tang Ping suits exactly what you're saying too
I'm curious what other succinct terms people would use to describe the act of doing the bare minimum and not engaging beyond what is required and asked for.
If you buy a monitor from Amazon, do you expect that they will thrown in another one for free?
What about if you hire a plumber to come fixe a leaky pipe, do you expect them to install a new set of water taps for free while they're at it?
Do you go to McDonalds and expect a posh table waiter, and a complimentary bottle of Beaujoulais wine along with lightly seasoned oregano and olive oil garlick bread, for the price of a Big Mac?
So why expect that workers will do more work than what they are being paid for?!
If it's only a business relationship, as those very same managers treat it when it's time for layoffs or when giving below inflation raises because the job market isn't tight and they can easilly find replacements, then it's only fair that workers too treaty it as only a business relationship and only provide the level of service they're being paid for.
If they want the haute cuisine Michellin Starred service they're gonna have to pay more than McDonald prices.
The whole calling it "quiet quiting" is just a reflection of the moneyed class wanting to, as the Brits would call it, eat the cake and still have it afterwards.
high quality working. individuals really need to lower the bar. when I was young the expectation when hiring minum wage was if you got someone who showed up, on time, consistantly and was not drunk or on drugs. that was a high quality hire. workers need to learn to slack like the 80's.
I’m curious what other succinct terms people would use to describe the act of doing the bare minimum and not engaging beyond what is required and asked for.
Perhaps these aren't punchy, but that's also why we're stuck with awful things like "quiet quitting". But these capture the correct (IMO) sentiment:
"Adhering to the employment contract."
"Doing my job."
"Meeting documented expectations."
"Following management's lead."
The last one is important. There's a concept of "modeling" in terms of providing strong examples of allowed/expected behavior in the workplace. If management really wants people to go above and beyond, that change starts with a show of the same on their part. I would bet that a lot of frustrated managers are themselves not putting in the extra effort, or do not make a show of it.
gaslighting
noun
gas·light·ing ˈgas-ˌlī-tiŋ
: psychological manipulation of a person usually over an extended period of time that causes the victim to question the validity of their own thoughts, perception of reality, or memories and typically leads to confusion, loss of confidence and self-esteem, uncertainty of one's emotional or mental stability, and a dependency on the perpetrator
When "line go up" mentality gets applied to your workforce. God forbid they keep working to the same standard they always have, must be moar! Always moar!
How do I get a "career" that pays more than minimum wage, there's some kind of occult mix of words and body language I'm just not getting. Am I autistic? I don't care.
