Why your best employees are quiet quitting and what to do about it
The term “quiet quitting” annoys me because it puts the blame on the employee. Someone doing their job description and nothing more isn’t quitting. They’re doing exactly what they were hired to do. The real question is why they stopped going above and beyond, and the answer is almost always management.
TL;DR: Quiet quitting isn’t a worker problem. It’s a management signal. Your best employees don’t disengage because they’re lazy. They disengage because they stopped believing their extra effort matters. Fix the recognition, fix the problem.
What quiet quitting actually is
It’s not laziness. It’s a conscious decision by an employee to stop investing emotional energy in a job that doesn’t return the investment. They show up. They do the work. They leave on time. They stop volunteering for extra projects, offering ideas in meetings, or caring about outcomes beyond their direct responsibilities.
I’ve managed teams in construction and corporate environments, and I can tell you this has existed forever. We just didn’t have a viral name for it until 2022.
Why your best people are the first to go
Your top performers are the ones who feel the gap between effort and recognition most acutely. They’re the ones who stayed late to finish the proposal, who mentored the new hire without being asked, who caught the error in the report before it went to the client.
When that effort gets acknowledged with nothing more than more work, they recalibrate. Not immediately. It’s gradual. They test the boundary. They stop staying late. Nobody notices. They stop volunteering. Nobody notices. They stop caring. Somebody finally notices, but by then it’s too late.
The three things that cause it
Recognition that doesn’t exist. If the only feedback your team gets is when something goes wrong, they’ll stop trying to make things go right. People need to hear when their work matters. Not praise for the sake of praise. Specific, honest acknowledgment of the impact their effort had.
Promotions that go to the wrong people. Nothing kills motivation faster than watching a mediocre performer get promoted because they’re friends with the boss. Your best people are watching who gets ahead and drawing conclusions about what this company actually values.
Workload that only increases. If the reward for being great at your job is getting three more people’s jobs added to yours with no raise and no title change, you’re punishing your best employees. They’ll figure that out faster than you think.
What to do about it
Have honest one on ones. Not performance reviews. Real conversations. “What do you need from me? What’s frustrating you? Where do you want to be in a year?” Then actually do something with the answers.
Promote based on demonstrated ability, not tenure or politics. When you promote the right person for the right reasons and your team can see the logic, it raises the bar for everyone.
Redistribute work fairly. If your best employee is carrying the load of two people, either hire another person or reduce the load. Burning out your top talent is the most expensive management mistake you can make.
Quiet quitting is feedback. Your employees are telling you something. The question is whether you’re listening.
About Khary Penebaker
Khary Penebaker is a Regional General Manager at Great Day Improvements, overseeing operations across Chicago, Madison, Milwaukee, and Minneapolis. He previously built Roofed Right America from startup to $35M+ in revenue with 180 employees and founded Penebaker Enterprises, growing it from $1.5M to $15M. A gun violence prevention advocate and former Everytown for Gun Safety Fellow, Khary brings two decades of leadership experience in construction, operations, and civic engagement.
Frequently Asked Questions
What causes quiet quitting?
The top three causes are feeling undervalued, lack of growth opportunities, and poor management. People do not disengage from work they care about. They disengage from environments that do not care about them.
How do you re-engage a quiet quitting employee?
Have a direct conversation. Not a performance review. A human conversation. Ask what has changed. Ask what they need. Sometimes the answer is simple and fixable. Sometimes the relationship is already over.
Is quiet quitting always the employee fault?
Almost never. Gallup data shows 70 percent of employee engagement variance is tied to the manager. If your team is disengaged, look at your own leadership first.
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Last updated: March 13, 2026
