"We strive to go above and beyond for our (members) (customers) (clients)."

I have heard senior managers spout that phrase, and others like it for as long as I've been working. In the past, when I did tasks beyond the minimum required, as my reward, I would get additional work to complete from more mediocre colleagues or from those who were on vacation or sick leave. Now and then, a manager planned a breakfast consisting of donuts and bagels or ordered pizza for lunch. Or I'd get a cursory "Thanks!" in response. I never received adequate compensation for all the extra work I put in that required that I stay well past the official quitting time of 5 pm or answer phone calls or emails outside of business hours.

What Is "Quiet Quitting?"

Well, there's a new mindset taking hold that pushes back against hustle culture and breaking our backs for little reward for employers who don't care about the well-being of their employees. The term for this priority shift is "quiet quitting."

The term "quiet quitting" is a little confusing because workers who do it aren't actually quitting their jobs, and as such, it's actually a misnomer. What it is in practice is not going above and beyond at a job.

It is only doing the job that one is hired to do and no more. It means not leaving work two hours past your official end time because a project just had to be completed before a deadline. It means not responding to business phone calls or work emails outside of business hours. It's a declaration that a worker is setting clear boundaries between their work and personal lives while reclaiming their time.

Unsurprisingly, employers don't like this trend because it means they're less able to exploit their employees by having them do labor without compensation. Naturally, it reinforces their opinion that "nobody wants to work anymore."

But is everyone afforded the latitude to do quiet quitting?

What Hustle Culture Has Wrought

The United States is heavily influenced by the Puritan mentality that hard work, industry, and diligence would keep people away from the temptations of idleness and sloth. Our country has been among the leaders in productivity for decades. However, in the past, our focus on work while devaluing our leisure time and our relationships with loved ones came with a price.

Our government doesn't guarantee workers any paid time off. Our employers offer workers the least amount of vacation time among industrialized nations, with only 10 days a year on average. In the past, employer greed and technology made it difficult for workers to unplug, thus shortchanging our rest and hampering our relationships with loved ones.

The common mentality in many companies before the pandemic was that those who only did the tasks that were required of them and left work on time were slackers and not team players. I witnessed colleagues and managers experience mental breakdowns and physical illness due to work stress. Going above and beyond for a job only to end up sick, anxious, depressed, and without the compensation one deserved, just didn't seem worth it.

How Could Quiet Quitting Affect Black Workers?

Having said all that, what is usually left out of the discussion is how the trend of quiet quitting affects Black workers. It has different ramifications if you're Black. For one thing, we may not have the luxury to "quiet quit" as we're often the last ones hired and the first ones fired. We can't afford to slack off because our unemployment rate is double that of whites.

Additionally, employers already stereotype Black employees as lazy and incompetent as it is. Speaking for myself, I feel as if I don't have a choice but to go above and beyond my job description just to prove that I am just as good as any white employee. If I joined the trend to quiet quit and dialed back my performance, will this prove to my employer that I'm lazy and incompetent after all? Will I even keep my job?

I also can't forget that every time I set foot in a corporate office, I'm at a disadvantage. Ultimately, my skills, knowledge, and work ethic only take me so far because, as I've also experienced, those attributes don't always get me the promotions or compensation I deserve. Those who are rewarded most frequently are those who have connections, which I lack. I don't personally know anyone who's a C-level employee anywhere.

The tenets of quiet quitting imply that one shouldn't have to go the extra mile to prove themselves loyal or worthy to an employer. They sound nice in theory, but do they apply equally to all workers? As it stands now, they don't.

Because of entrenched racism, discrimination, and bias, Black workers exist in a Catch-22 in the corporate world. We're being told that we shouldn't bust our asses for no reward, but if we don't, it can reinforce our employers' stereotypes of our inferiority, and we risk losing our jobs. In essence, we can't win. As a result, Black workers may feel that simply leaving their jobs for other employment is preferable to quiet quitting.

So, in the end, quiet quitting is just another privilege afforded to white people. As if they don't have enough advantages already.

© Vena Moore 2022