Quiet quitting is the latest viral trend in the workplace: it encourages you only to do the essentials you’re being paid for and ignore the rest.
This method is how young workers prioritize their mental health in workplaces that are often unreasonably demanding.
Quiet quitting has plenty of benefits, like equalizing the relationship between the employer and employee and stopping unscrupulous employers from taking advantage of their staff.
However, this trend doesn’t work for Black women.
Workplace Inequality Still Exists
For minorities to climb the corporate ladder, they must work twice as hard as their counterparts to reach the same levels.
For instance, society expects Black women to have a consistently stellar performance in the workplace.
If Black women perform at the same intensity and dedication as white men, society sees them as incompetent and notices their mistakes more.
It’s an awful but real situation—proven by this study about women in the workplace.
The “Financially Irresponsible” author, Rakhim Sabree, has experienced similar discrimination.
The author was once told that he could never be seen as exceeding expectations because he didn’t take on more work despite contributing to conferences and publications in his free time.
And people agree.
When Sabree shared his thoughts on quiet quitting on his LinkedIn page, many people commented with similar experiences and ideas.
“As a trans-man POC, I tried to quiet quit… and I was continuously met with bullying, entitlement, and harassment behavior.” Gabriel Daly
“Even working harder to get promotions or being very talented at our job and position puts us as more likely being seen as a threat rather than as an asset.” Louis Gonzalez
Performance Reviews Counter Quiet Quitting
At its core, quiet quitting is a brilliant evolution for workers.
However, performance reviews counter it.
Before quiet quitting became a thing, Black women were still held to stricter standards than their counterparts.
According to a study on the tech industry, women have a higher chance of negative feedback because of personality traits that society sees as positive in men: aggression and bossiness.
It gets worse.
When women perform excellently in the workplace, they still get lower evaluations than men.
So, if Black women choose only to do their essential work duties, they will suffer when it comes to performance reviews.
Black Women Must Be Twice As Good
There’s a saying among African Americans: in this country, you must work twice as hard to earn half as much as white people.
This is the “Prove It Again” bias, according to Dr. Joan Williams.
Dr. Williams learned that three-quarters of Black women in the U.S. feel like they must repeatedly prove themselves in the workplace.
Former First Lady Michelle Obama echoed this in her 2015 speech to the Tuskegee University graduates.
She revealed that society wouldn’t see how hard Black graduates have worked and sacrificed to become university graduates.
“Instead, they will make assumptions about who they think you are based on their limited notion of the world.”
Quiet Quitting: A Grand Idea, Just Not for Everyone
Quiet quitting isn’t aggressive or unfair; it’s a peaceful, conflict-free way for overworked staff to demand equality, appreciation, and opportunity.
However, this is particularly hard for the Black community to effect, and it might even lead to some losing their jobs.
Leaders, business owners, and others in positions of power must understand why quiet quitting exists in the first place.
Once they do, they must use this knowledge to work on their biases and correct workplace inequalities that have existed for decades.
Only then can the workplace become a more inclusive space for the Black community and other minorities.
