How can companies deal with “quiet quitting”?

Companies need to understand and accommodate the needs of young people in a labour market marked by social pressures and crises older generations have not had to face, argue Professor of Public Health and Education Klaus Hurrelmann and youth researcher Simon Schnetzer in an article for Der Tagesspiegel from 21 December.

To businesses worried about the phenomenon of “quiet quitting”, the idea coined by younger generations – especially Gen Z – to do the minimum required of a job and no more, Hurrelmann and Schnetzer say: Companies must “take young people’s concerns seriously, that the years of prosperity are over. Today, more than in the past, it is important to show young people realistic perspectives in terms of career, finances and purpose to inspire confidence in them and show them that investing their energy in the future is worthwhile.”

The authors of the study "Youth in Germany" also note the importance for businesses to conduct regular outreach to secondary schools, adding that Germany’s education and labour systems have drifted apart. “The point is not to lock young people into a concrete career path early on, but to offer them as many opportunities to gain practical experience, from internships over trial periods in parallel to school, to student-run businesses,” they write.

The full article is available on Der Tagesspiegel (in German).