There has been a rising trend of quiet quitting happening across different workplaces. This is when employees perform the bare minimum of their roles and put in no additional effort or time than necessary. Thanks to social media, it became a publicised trend in the United States and eventually worldwide.

The management practice that corresponds with quiet quitting is called quiet firing. This is when a manager or supervisor makes a concerted effort to encourage workers to leave by their own choice rather than by being fired. They may involve piling on work or being overly critical with their feedback.

Is quiet firing happening in your company?

There are a number of ways that this may manifest in your organisation, but it’s often the result of poorly trained management. It may not be a new concept but it’s becoming increasingly common, with a Resumebuilder.com survey revealing that 1 of 3 managers are using passive-aggressive tactics like:

Targeting specific employees

Examine if any of the people in management are acting intimidating towards their subordinates. When they like an employee, they might be showering them with promotions and praises. At the same time, when they dislike anyone, they ignore them or find the tiniest thing to complain about.

Making work life miserable

This might come in the form of shouting in front of their co-workers and failing to invite them to important celebrations in the company. Also falling under this category is bombarding them with tasks that the manager knows are beyond their skill set or capabilities.

Ganging up with other leaders

Sometimes, it’s not a single manager who is quiet firing employees but the rest of the managers being in the scheme. Remote staff in the Philippines may have brought up the matter to another supervisor yet they are being told that there’s nothing wrong or it’s business as usual.

Withholding opportunities for growth

It starts with a remote assistant maybe being assigned tasks that are beneath their job description or skill set while their colleagues have chances to learn. They also don’t receive any feedback regarding the work they are doing even if they are actively asking for it.

Delaying any promises made

Another typical sign is that promises are made but aren’t being given immediately. Salary increases and promotions keep being moved another six months or performance reviews are constantly being rescheduled to the following month, for instance. When asked for an update, the supervisor keeps saying that it’s being processed.

What to do to keep quiet firing from happening

Compared to a clean termination or firing, it may cost you more in the long run. You never know when the employee is going to quit so the business suffers from having an unproductive worker. As tension between the individual and management rises, they may retaliate or involve the team.

As frustrating quiet quitting may be, quiet firing is not the answer so here are the things your company may do instead:

Knowing the people they’re working with

Managers must understand that employees are more than their skills, experience, or knowledge. They have their own families, hobbies, interests, and talents which sometimes compete with their work. By building a real connection with them, leaders are better able to help their team with juggling everything.

Getting ready for uncomfortable situations

Sometimes, when a manager has no idea how to resolve a conflict or wants to avoid it altogether, they would rather ignore the worker altogether. Management has to be trained how to provide constructive feedback and have difficult discussions, especially when hiring remote employees in other states.

Checking-in with team members informally

Depending on the arrangements of your organisation regarding performance reviews, it’s a good idea for the HR department to ask workers how they’re doing lately. You might be surprised to learn that they don’t feel heard or appreciated. It may be that they’re suffering from a mental health issue too.

Increasing the frequency of communications

If your business decided to hire remote staff, it’s even more important to keep communication lines open to boost engagement and morale. Management has to be transparent regarding their expectations and standards so workers become comfortable with sharing their gripes as well.

Practising any conversations in advance

When leaders have to have a challenging conversation, it’s wise for them to rehearse whatever they have to say first. They may do so with a family member but it’s better if done with the HR or with other leaders. This way, they know if they are using the right tone and language for the situation.

Scheduling feedback and coaching sessions

It’s crucial to have meetings for discussing performance based on standards that were clearly laid out. This allows managers to talk about how they feel the staff is doing and what they must do to improve. Consider scheduling a weekly progress meeting for each team.

Providing opportunities for career development

Ensure that employees have chances to expand their knowledge outside of their day-to-day tasks. You might offer training for jobs in other departments, for instance, and they may see if they want to shift their careers there. Offer access to resources and online courses by paying for subscriptions or memberships as well.

Hiring the right people from the beginning

When you select the right people from the start, you don’t have to worry about them deciding to quiet quit later on. Consider outsourcing to remote staff in the Philippines so you’re sure to get a worker who meets the needs of your company and team.

We at Remote Workmate are a remote personal assistants agency that specialises in helping organisations to hire remote staff. If you are thinking to hire a remote assistant in the Philippines, we have some of the best candidates for you.