Resenteeism

What Is Resenteeism?

Resenteeism ("resentment" plus "absenteeism") describes what happens when an employee is unhappy in their role but stays with the company anyway. These workers resent their jobs and often aren't afraid to express their discontent. However, they don't feel like they can quit due to financial insecurities or a lack of options in the job market.

What's the Difference Between Resenteeism and Quiet Quitting?

A common response to stress and burnout, quiet quitting is when an employee keeps their job but only puts in the required amount of time, energy, and effort. Essentially, they push back on additional responsibilities and avoid going the extra mile to achieve better work-life balance. Quiet quitting can lead to resenteeism—and the more overt discontent that comes with it.

What Does Resenteeism Look Like in the Workplace?

Resenteeism may start out as apathy and become increasingly worse or obvious. Resentful employees often exhibit recognizable signs that managers should look out for, such as:

• Negative attitudes toward feedback, tasks, or the workplace in general
• Lack of emotional investment and motivation
• Declining productivity or work quality
• Disengagement from social events
• Disinterest in team success
• Increased absenteeism, tardiness, and breaks from work

What Can Contribute to Employee Resenteeism?

Employees can feel trapped in a job they don't want for many reasons, which may be inside or outside an employer's control. Common causes of employee resenteeism include:

• Economic downturn: Switching jobs isn't feasible for everyone all the time, especially during periods of widespread economic hardship when the future is less certain.
• Lack of recognition: Employees may feel undervalued for their efforts and unappreciated in their role, no matter how much work they put into their jobs.
• Lack of motivation: From poor compensation to performance mis management, core workplace structures can contribute to this workplace trend.
• Manager-employee disconnects: Poor or very little guidance and communication between employees and leadership can erode trust and employee engagement.
• Low growth potential: Limited career advancement opportunities can cause employees to feel disillusioned and unsatisfied in their careers.
• Workplace frustrations: Continued frustration at work could be interpersonal, policy-related, or situational.

If you feel like resenteeism is creeping into your workplace, the first step is understanding the issue. Survey your employees. Even if you think you know the problem, gathering feedback ensures you're not missing a key piece of the puzzle.

The Negative Impacts of Resenteeism for Employers

If left unchecked, this type of workplace negativity can be contagious. Resentful employees aren't usually quiet about how they feel about their jobs and this can create a toxic work culture. Additionally, resenteeism may cause the following:

• Decreased employee engagement
• Increased turnover rates
• Imbalanced team dynamics
• Poor quality of work

Resenteeism can also affect your business's bottom line. If many of your employees can't collaborate well together or produce high-quality work, this impacts your company's financial health—as does the cost associated with high turnover. Plus, disgruntled employees are often the harshest online critics. Resenteeism can lead to negative reviews on websites like Glassdoor and Indeed, which might sway future job seekers away from your company.

How to Avoid and Address Resenteeism at Work

Preventing resenteeism is important to fostering a healthy, happy, and productive workplace. The most important thing to do is learn the signs of resenteeism, so you can recognize them in your employees quickly. Then, you can come up with a strategy that addresses common pain points. For example, here are a few ways to reduce resenteeism in your organization:

Train Your Managers

Educate your managers on how to become more effective leaders—they directly impact the level of job satisfaction and engagement at your company. Your leadership team should be able to spot problematic attitudes and behaviors before they turn into widespread issues and know how to address them promptly and professionally.

Enhance Your Performance Management Strategy

Does your company prioritize performance management? Create a strategy that includes more frequent check-ins than the annual employee review, celebrates accomplishments, and provides clear pathways for advancement. Personalized feedback sessions and career plans help ensure each person knows how valuable they are to your company's mission, vision, and goals.

Create a Culture of Open Communication

Encourage workplace transparency between your employees and managers. Employees should be able to voice their thoughts, ideas, and feelings without worrying about repercussions, and they should feel confident that you can come up with solutions together when issues arise. Also, managers should feel comfortable giving feedback and know how to deliver it thoughtfully.

Increase Employee Autonomy

If possible, try to increase the level of employee autonomy at your company. Empowering your employees to take ownership of their role where they can will help them feel more in control of their circumstances and remain more engaged at work.

Encourage Healthy Workplace Behaviors

Work-life balance is important for every individual at your company and helps prevent burnout. Encourage your employees to use their PTO or flexible work arrangements, set boundaries while working remotely, and other healthy practices.