quiet firing

Quiet firing is when an employer makes a job so unrewarding or uncomfortable that the employee leaves on their own, instead of being fired outright.

What quiet firing looks like

PBS NewsHour described it as a manager slowly pulling back a worker’s duties instead of firing them. Common signs include being left out of meetings, losing interesting projects, being passed over for raises or promotions year after year, and getting little feedback or support. The message is “we don’t want you here,” without anyone having to say it.

For companies, it can avoid the cost and awkwardness of a formal dismissal. For employees, it can be demoralising and confusing.

Examples

• “They took away all my clients and stopped inviting me to meetings. I think I’m being quietly fired.”
• “Three years without a raise feels like quiet firing.”
• “Quiet firing is just bad management with a new name.”

Quiet firing vs. quiet quitting

They’re mirror images. Quiet quitting is a worker pulling back their effort; quiet firing is an employer pulling back support, hoping the worker will leave.

Where quiet firing comes from

According to Dictionary.com, the term emerged in 2022, modelled on “quiet quitting.” In August 2022, a Forbes writer called it a largely unreported trend that had been going on for years, which captures the debate: the behaviour is old, only the label is new. Who coined it isn’t known.

Related terms

• Quiet quitting: doing only the minimum.
• Quiet hiring: filling roles without new hires.
• Loud quitting: open, active disengagement.
• Rage applying: applying to lots of jobs out of frustration.

More workplace terms in our work and money slang guide.