Editorial: The great resignation: managing people in a post COVID-19 pandemic world

We cannot tune into the media and not be bombarded with stories about the “great resignation.” The phrase was first used by Anthony Klotz, a professor at University College London, who predicted a large wave of resignation following the COVID-19 pandemic. Many academics and commentators seized on this catchy phrase to make claims about employees “taking back” their lives citing high burnout rates, a desire for better work/life balance and toxic work environments (Needelman, 2022; Smith, 2022a; Sull et al., 2022). The great resignation has also led to the other catch phrases such as “quiet quitting” and “quiet firing” reflecting employees withdrawing their extra role behaviors and employers piling on unpleasant and unrewarding work (Harter, 2022; Miller, 2022).