What Is The Great Resignation? Causes, Statistics, and Trends

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Updated November 30, 2022

What Is the Great Resignation?

The Great Resignation describes the elevated rate at which U.S. workers resigned from their jobs starting in the spring of 2021, amid strong labor demand and low unemployment even as vaccinations eased the severity of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Anthony Klotz, a professor of business administration at Texas A&M University, coined the term in May 2021, attributing the phenomenon to pent-up demand from workers who deferred decisions to quit early in the pandemic.

Key Takeaways

The primary cause of the Great Resignation is likely intense competition for workers, as reflected in a high number of job vacancies and a lower unemployment rate.
Sectors hit hardest by the COVID-19 pandemic, such as accommodations and healthcare, have tended to have the most job openings.
The pandemic caused some workers to exit the labor force while others have reduced hours, contributing to competition for available labor.
The quitting rate is heavily influenced by the pace of hiring, and it could slow once the job market cools.

Understanding the Great Resignation

Though each individual’s reasons for changing jobs or leaving the workforce are tied to personal circumstances, the arrival of COVID-19 delayed decision-making for many, and voluntary separations from employment for reasons other than retirement plunged from 2.3% in February 2020 to 1.6% two months later.

However, the trend shifted from April 2020 through March 2022, when 3% of the workforce would exit their jobs in the Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS) by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).

Employees often quit jobs after accepting a better one elsewhere, so to a large extent, the drop reflected the decline in hiring for new positions. Others undoubtedly delayed a planned exit, whether to start their own business or for another reason, amid the economic turmoil at the outset of the pandemic.

With the arrival of COVID-19 vaccines and the accompanying economic rebound, hiring has picked up, even as those who delayed quitting for other reasons finally felt comfortable about proceeding.

Some have suggested the quitting rate may also have risen for other reasons tied to the COVID-19 pandemic:

Pandemic experiences led some workers to reevaluate life priorities and reduce working hours or leave the labor force entirely.
Employers demanded employees return to the office after allowing remote work in 2020.
Mistreatment by employers and customers during the pandemic pushed workers to leave as other options became available.
The labor force participation rate has been slow to recover from pandemic lows, fueling the competition for workers.
Some people left work because they could not obtain childcare as schools shifted to remote learning, while others did so because they wouldn’t comply with workplace COVID-19 vaccination requirements.

Notably, though, the top reasons given by the workers who quit in a Pew Research Center survey conducted in February 2022 were low pay and a lack of advancement opportunities, suggesting that many left for a better offer.

Resignation Trends

Harvard economist Jason Furman argued in June 2021 that the elevated rate of people leaving their jobs was in line with the rising number of job openings, suggesting that competition among employers was driving resignations.

A record 4.5 million workers quit jobs for reasons other than retirement in March 2022, representing an increase of 152,000 from February 2022, according to JOLTS data. Job openings of 11.55 million at the end of March 2022 were also the highest on record.

Percent of Workers Who Quit Their Jobs, All Industries and Regions
	Jan.	Feb.	March	April	May	June	July	Aug.	Sept.	Oct.	Nov.	Dec.
2022	2.8	2.9	3.0
2021	2.3	2.4	2.6	2.8	2.6	2.8	2.8	2.8	2.9	2.8	3.0	3.0
2020	2.4	2.3	2.0	1.6	1.7	1.9	2.1	2.1	2.2	2.3	2.3	2.4

Source: Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis

The industries with the highest resignation rates in March 2022 were accommodation and food services (6.1%) and retail trade (4.5%). Accommodation and food services was also the industry with the highest job openings rate at 9.9% in March 2022, though that was down from 12.2% three months earlier. Healthcare and social assistance was next with an openings rate of 9%.

Job Openings as a Percent of Total Jobs Plus Openings, All Industries and Regions
Year	Jan.	Feb.	March	April	May	June	July	Aug.	Sept.	Oct.	Nov.	Dec.
2022	7.0	7.0	7.1
2021	4.8	5.2	5.5	6.0	6.2	6.3	6.9	6.7	6.8	7.0	6.8	7.1
2020	4.5	4.4	3.8	3.5	3.9	4.2	4.5	4.3	4.4	4.6	4.6	4.6

Source: Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis

Resignation Intentions

According to the 2022 Work Trend Index survey by Microsoft Corp. (MSFT), 43% of workers said they were somewhat or extremely likely to consider changing employers in the current year, up from 41% a year earlier. For U.S. Gen Z and millennial workers, the figure stood at 52%, and it rose to 60% for U.S. workers hired during the pandemic.

Another survey conducted in November 2021 found that 23% of U.S. workers planned to quit over the next year. The top reasons cited were the desire for better working conditions, burnout, and the pursuit of higher pay.

How Can Companies Prevent Employees From Leaving During the Great Resignation?

Anthony Klotz, a professor of business administration at Texas A&M University who coined the “Great Resignation” term, says companies can retain employees who are burned out by giving them a break and more support. Experts say employers can offer more accommodating work arrangements, including remote work, hybrid work, and flexible schedules. And they can listen to what employees say they want and need instead of making tone-deaf, top-down decisions.

What Are the Signs of Burnout at Work?

Burnout looks different in different lines of work. A burned-out respiratory therapist or veterinary technician may have experienced a level of trauma at work beyond that risked by a typical office employee. In general, common burnout symptoms include exhaustion, cynicism, and a sense of ineffectiveness. Poor working conditions that include routine exposure to COVID-19, understaffing, insufficient time off, and emotional abuse have contributed to burnout during the pandemic.

Is the Great Resignation Just a Great Exaggeration?

The proof is there in the elevated quitting rate tracked by the U.S. Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS), which matched a series high at 3% in March 2022. But if hiring were to slow, causing unemployment to tick up, then the quitting rate would likely decline accordingly.

Article Sources

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