The great resignation seems to be spreading faster than the pandemic! From national strives to national resignations! On the 6th of July, the UK saw the biggest number of political resignations in a single day. Over 50 Government officials handed in their notices in a 48hour period with a record 40 of those ministers and aides quitting on Wednesday in a record for a 24-hour period, and they were shortly followed by the PM himself.
Boris Johnson, reluctantly, tendered his approximate 3-month resignation yesterday, following the biggest government walkout in British history.
But the Government is not the only one who has taken the chance and jumped ship. According to a recent survey by Ipsos, 26% of people have considered quitting their job, 29% have looked for another job, 13% have applied to other jobs and 6% have discussed resigning with their employer.
These findings come as a shock to some as traditionally in the aftermath of global pandemics, there is traditionally a greater need for workers and survivors of pandemics were in a strong position to demand changes to the workplace, including increased pay, meaning they had less of a need to leave their positions.
Markel asked a number of experts in different fields their thoughts on this quitting phenomenon and historian Calum Bannerman explains that it is his belief that higher levels of wealth and health relative to historic pandemics, this allows people to be able to afford to resign from work and are able to work remotely. This ability to work remotely is thanks to advanced posting and shipping capabilities, as well as improved communication thanks to the internet.
With national strike action being planned for the Rail, Air travel, Post Office, Bin Services, Civil service and BT (formerly British Telecom), worker dissatisfaction is blatantly apparent, and it is not a far stretch to assume that further strikes resignations across all industries, especially with the current government in shambles and no clear leader ready to assume the tainted position as leader of the Tory party and as Prime Minister.
The current action by the government resigning has only solidified the effectiveness of mass resignations and is likely to prompt similar action from already disgruntled industries, from retail and hospitality to transport and civil service.
According to Willis Towers Watson’s 2022 Global Benefits Attitudes Survey, Forty-four percent of current employees are also “job seekers,” and more than half of workers claimed that it was looking for higher pay was a top reason they’d look for a new job.
On top of the lower job satisfaction rate, there has also been an increasing trend of Side-Hustles, where workers will earn a side income from doing small jobs in their free time; from running a small accessories store to offering admin skills. The site PeoplePerHour released their own stats stating that a fifth of freelancers are now self-employed while simultaneously working as an employee.
This option of side hustles and small businesses has offered workers a “safety net” where they can supplement their wages with additional income, in order to help with this cost of living crisis. Some side-hustlers have even had the opportunity to make it their full-time job with businesses seeing great success with the help of online presences. Businesses such as Smoothie Giant “Innocent Drinks” started out as a part-time endeavour whilst founders Richard Reed, Jon Wright and Adam Balon attended university. Another example would be the clothing brand known as Under Armor, which started out as a better alternative for his training and workout gear; from working in his Grandmother’s basement to the founder of one of the top 5 sports brands in the world; only ranked below renowned brands, Adidas, Nike and Puma!
So whether you are disgruntled in your job, seeking a better-paid role, or if you want to give your side hustle your full attention, you might just consider joining the “Great Resignation”. If you have a story of leaving your job or thinking about it, share your story on social media using the hashtag: #SelfEmploymentGrowth.
