The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
How to recognize ‘quiet firing’
At the same time, use it to take charge of your career.
Is your workplace starting to feel like a doomed relationship? Are you hitting a wall where your efforts aren’t appreciated, and it feels untenable to stay?
If you feel like you’re slowly being pushed out of your workplace, you could be right — your supervisor might be “quiet firing” you. Here are the signs of quiet firing and what you can do to take charge of the situation and your career.
What is quiet firing?
Quiet firing, sometimes called silent firing, refers to when an employer indirectly pushes an employee to resign by failing to provide support and career development, either unintentionally or intentionally. This usually creates a negative work environment where the employee feels a lack of motivation and appreciation.
These are some quiet firing signs to look out for:
■ You receive mostly negative feedback at work, or you get very little feedback.
■ Your wage remains stagnant or you get overlooked for promotions, despite producing good work.
■ You get assigned the least preferable job tasks compared with other colleagues who have similar job titles or tasks that are below your level.
■ You’re suddenly burdened with a heavier workload than usual.
■ You’re an hourly employee and are getting fewer work shifts than usual.
■ You’re excluded from company events or meetings that others in similar positions are invited to.
If you’re wondering whether you’re being quiet fired, it’s important to look at the overall picture. Consider if things are changing compared with your past experience at work and compared with your colleagues. For example, if everyone is overworked, you might have a negative work environment due to other reasons, such as understaffing. On the other hand, if you’re being personally targeted to a level that goes beyond the signs of quiet firing above, you might be experiencing workplace bullying.
Why do companies “quiet fire” workers?
Quiet firing can reflect a larger problem in the work culture at your company or be specific to the relationship between you and your supervisor. Here are some of the most common reasons that you’re being quiet fired:
■ A disengaged, inexperienced, or overworked supervisor who fails to help subordinates thrive.
■ A negative work environment, either due to a toxic supervisor or one who reflects the larger culture in the company (perhaps they’re even being quietly fired themselves).
■ An intentional strategy to get an employee to resign to avoid getting hit by a lawsuit or paying unemployment or as retaliation for a lawsuit or union dispute.
■ Discrimination, for example due to your race, sexual orientation, gender, or religion.
How to respond to quiet firing
If you’re being quietly fired, you may have done nothing wrong. It’s often a result of an unhealthy work environment beyond your control.
However, if you feel like you might have been slacking off at work for a while, you should ask yourself if you might be guilty of quiet quitting. Quiet firing can be a response to an employee becoming disengaged at work and doing the bare minimum.
Quiet firing is always a bad management strategy, no matter the reason. It results in a negative work environment and dampers productivity in the workplace. It can also be illegal, depending on the intentions and the strategies. A supervisor should discuss their concerns directly with their employees, and a company with a healthy work culture has procedures in place for how to do so.
If you think your employer is quiet firing you in response to your reduced work performance, consider turning the ship around and putting your best efforts in (while still maintaining boundaries and a healthy work-life balance).
In most other cases, being quiet fired might be difficult to put an end to, but you can try the following strategies:
■ Document everything and keep the notes at home. If you have a toxic work environment to the extent that it’s illegal, this can later be used as evidence in a lawsuit.
■ Discuss your concerns with your supervisor. It’s best to use specific examples. “I feel that the atmosphere is negative” isn’t a fact. “I’m concerned due to the fact that I haven’t received a performance review or raise in 2years” is.
■ Discuss your concerns with higher management.
If you have a toxic boss, you may need to go beyond them to get help, such as to their supervisor or the HR department.
■ File a lawsuit. If the employer is making the workplace intolerable to the point that you feel forced to resign, you might consider contacting an attorney about whether you have a case for a lawsuit for constructive dismissal (also known as constructive discharge) or for discrimination.
If you’re unable to change your work situation, your best bet is to look for another job where your contributions will be valued. While this may seem like giving up, it could be your best choice.