What is “The Great Resignation”?

Whether we wanted it or not, the past 16 months (which has, in my opinion, been most appropriately dubbed by Karen Gladden Barre in this Global News story as a “midlife gap year”) has presented us with a lot of time to think. As a result, it was inevitable that the pandemic would force us into existential questions eventually, even if we did our level best to outrun, out-bake, out-drink, out-knit, out- [insert coping device of choice here] them.

Whether we wanted it or not, the past 16 months has presented us with a lot of time to think.

And one of the big ones has been work. How we work, why we work; what work used to look like versus what it looks like now. What we like about remote work, what we don’t. What we miss about the office, what we don’t.

These are some of the many questions driving The Great Resignation of 2021, and they’re questions that have already had a real impact on the labour market. According to Statistics Canada, 130,000 people voluntarily left the job market in the past year. Global staffing firm, Robert Haff, conducted a survey which revealed that 33% of employed Gen Z and millennial professionals plan on pursuing a new job. And these stats are only part of the picture.

According to Statistics Canada, 130,000 people voluntarily left the job market in the past year.

What has prompted this massive shift in the sheer number of people willing to continue to work at all and people who are now wanting new jobs? The Great COVID Introspection of 2020-21. Workers across all industries have realized that many things about how they used to work no longer appeal or are acceptable. Long commutes, toxic work cultures, sustained work-life imbalances, unhappiness, boredom, unrelenting stress, lack of autonomy, burn out – to name a few – have suddenly become what we call in my business “non-negotiables”.

Far from a perfect model for everyone, working remotely has given many people a taste of a life that suits them better than the one they were living, and they’ve given themselves permission to reimagine what work could be like. Hence, The Great Resignation. It’s begun, it’s radically shifting the labour market in many ways, and it’s not over yet. We believe we will see massive changes in recruitment and retention strategies as workers and employers navigate this new terrain, and we’re excited to be doing what I do at such a pivotal time in employment history.

The Great Resignation. It’s begun, it’s radically shifting the labour market in many ways, and it’s not over yet.

We’ll be posting a series of blogs on this topic for employers/employees and career changers and providing career coaching and HR consulting services specifically to assist people during this time. As a team who have has done mid-career shifting ourselves, we understand the complexities, stressors and the possibilities of changing work. As consultants we have facilitated successful HR shifts and overhauls for many businesses and organizations. Please reach out if you’re looking for support for yourself or your business.