Workplace Trends in 2023: Quiet Hiring, Job Cushioning, and Job Cuffing

If you haven’t heard, ‘quiet quitting’ is so last year, and there is no doubt that quiet quitting has changed the way we think and talk about work. The term may not be going away anytime soon, but there are some new career trends emerging in 2023.

 

FIRST UP: “QUIET HIRING”

Accordingly to ForbesWomen editor Maggie McGrath, quiet hiring is when an organization needs to hire for a new set of skills, but instead of creating full-time positions, the company encourages employees to upskill themselves.

 

While many employees are in fact looking to increase their skill set and take on more responsibilities, if they are given these extra responsibilities without an increase in pay, they could potentially feel undervalued and underappreciated “quiet hiring” isn’t done carefully. Those feelings could then lead to burnout, and burnout could lead to the quiet quitting trend we saw in 2022. We at PEAR are actually fans of upskilling and do not feel it needs to always come with immediate financial benefit, but it should be accompanied by clear and supportive communications as to why this is ultimately good for the employee, even if the money is to come later.

 

NEXT: “JOB CUSHIONING”

Job cushioning means giving yourself a plan B, a safety net, or an alternative option to your current job without actively looking for a new job. The origin of the word, according to Forbes, comes from the phrase “to cushion your landing.”

The idea of career cushioning isn’t surprising given recent layoffs by major companies. An economic landscape like this can be scary and shock some into being concerned about a post-pandemic firing spree.

 

LASTLY: “JOB CUFFING”

The “quiet quitting” trend has now given way to “job cuffing,” according to new data from Glassdoor, which reported a huge spike in job searches, increasing by 28%, between January and February.

Job cuffing, a term borrowed from the dating world, is when you tie yourself to a job for the winter months. The goal is to hunker down until the weather gets warmer and there is, hopefully, a better job market. However, according to a recent study cited by Forbes, many people during their so-called “cuffing months” are having second thoughts about starting a new job.

Although no one can say with full certainty what workplace trends will end up dominating in 2023, there are ways to ensure you are prepared, such as by planning and implementing a talent retention strategy to ensure your employees are recognized, supported, mentored, and developed in such a way that they choose to stay with the company, no matter what the latest “quiet” fad might be.

 

 

Email me to find out how PEAR can help you retain your current talent!  mlukas@pearcoresolutions.com

 

Michel Lukas, SHRM-CP – HR Generalist, PEAR Core Solutions, Inc. – www.pearcoresolutions.com