Generation Z and “Quiet Quitting”: Rethinking onboarding in an era of employee disengagement

Abstract

Why are Generation Z employees quiet quitting? A potential answer is related to Generation Z disen-gagement. Quiet quitting is troublesome for com-panies with growing numbers of young recruits checking out emotionally from work. Literature about aggrieved company cultures discusses quiet quitting, the name Generation Z employees use for a form of disengagement. Nevertheless, there is a lack of empirical research on Generation Z disengagement. Moreover, there is a lack of qualitative research on quiet quitting and disengagement in general with existing recommendations originating from quantitative studies that do not examine the core nature of the phenomenon. The original-ity of the research stems from studying two interrelated issues: the characteristics of Generation Z disengagement and the characteristics of Genera-ion Z employee integration frameworks that consider their employee lifecycle. This paper discusses quiet quitting as a form of Kahn’s (1990) disengagement and a dimension of Generation Z’s exit, voice, loyalty, neglect (EVLN) model characteristic. The study follows a qualitative methodology. Firstly, grounded theory is employed to extract data from Generation Z employees and their managers and compare perceptions of the former’s disengagement and engagement. The research sample consisted of 75 participants. Secondly, unstructured observation was employed through a cohort longitudinal study of ten Generation Z employees at work over two years. The lifecycle of Generation Z employees is shown to be approximately one year. The research illustrates the Generation Z employee lifecycle curve and classifies the Generation Z employee engagement phases. Moreover, the study introduces a framework for integrating Generation Z within companies.