21% of employees in South Asia are ‘loud quitters’

South Asia has the highest regional percentage of engaged employees reveals a survey report. Interestingly, the highest regional percentage of anger at work is also reported from Afghanistan, Bangladesh, India, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka.

According to a Gallup report, 33 per cent of employees in South Asia are thriving at work. That is, they are engaged at work. This brings us to the three types of employees in organisation:

Thrivers: These employees, as the name suggests, are thriving at work. In other words, they like what they are doing, have found meaning in their job and are quite connected to their co-workers, team members and the organisation itself. They take pride in what they are doing, are accountable for their work and performance and have no qualms in putting in extra efforts for the good of their team, customers and employer.

Quiet quitters: These are the kind of employees who are forever looking at the time, and waiting to get through the day somehow and leave the workplace. They put in the bare minimum effort and are not mentally involved in the work or the organisation. Obviously, their productivity is poor and they experience stress and burnout more easily than their engaged counterparts. The percentage of quiet quitters in South Asia was 46 per cent in 2022, which is three percent less than 2021.

Loud quitters: These are the kind of employees that organisations should be careful of. They are so disconnected from their workplace and the people within that they are even capable of doing harm to the organisation. They may work against the organisation’s goals and its management. They have no faith or trust in the organisation and are unhappy at work. The percentage of loud quitters, that is, employees actively disengaged at work was 21 per cent in South Asia, which is 5 per cent less than what was in 2021.

Why do employees begin quiet quitting?

Employees who end up feeling frustrated when they realise there is no room for them to grow within the organisation, start disconnecting from the work. Sometimes, there are issues at the workplace that are brought to the notice of the management by the employees, but they feel disappointed when no action is taken or the situations are left unaddressed. This disappointment festers and makes them lose trust in the organization.

Many employees start quiet quitting because they feel their managers are not present.

When work pressure and overload prevents employees from enjoying quality time with their family and friends, or keeps them from pursuing their hobbies and other interests, they begin losing interest and actively disengage from work.

Loud quitting should not be ignored. If leaders and managers are able to identify the quiet quitters on time, they can be prevented from developing into loud quitters. In fact, quiet quitters can be tapped to bring about growth and change in the organisation. After all, they are just waiting for their leaders to interact with them, pat them on their back, listen to them and also encourage and inspire them. They can be managed in such a way that they turn into thrivers.