6 Signs Of Quiet Firing To Look Out For At Work

Quiet firing is a type of corporate gaslighting that can come in many forms.

For example, your employer makes your workplace unbearable for you with the hopes that you eventually quit.

Quiet firing is a passive-aggressive way managers force their workers to quit.

Sometimes done intentionally, sometimes not, being forced to quit is certainly not a memorable experience.

There is nothing joyful about feeling hopeless, overwhelmed, and unfulfilled in a job you once enjoyed, now you have to choose between leaving and securing your job.

As the name suggests, quiet firing thrives on being subtle and quiet, so the signs can be hard to detect.

But it is easier if you know what to look out for, so here are some signs of quiet firing to for:

Signs Of Quiet Firing

1. You’re Stagnant

This is one major sign that you’re being pushed out of a job.

You watch all your colleagues get promoted, move on to better positions in the company, and get praised.

While you are stuck right where you started.

If it begins to seem like everyone in your workplace is moving forward but you, that’s probably what’s happening.

Employers who quiet fire will try to make it seem like you’re doing something wrong when you’re the only one not thriving like others.

They make it obvious your colleagues are doing great but you aren’t, and you’d think it’s a fault of yours.

This is the gaslighting I was talking about.

So if you’ve not been promoted for a long time but other workers have been, chances are you’re being quite fired.

2. You Get The Worst Projects

How do you know your employer is forcing you to quit? You get the worst end of the projects every time.

If the company is taking on a new project and sharing responsibilities, you get the worst or most mundane tasks.

It’s an entirely different situation if occasionally you are assigned tough tasks because they believe you can handle them.

Receiving brain-numbing or overly horrendous tasks all the time is not a good sign.

Most times it’s a sign that you’re being forced to quit.

3. You’re Denied A Pay Raise

Everyone knows that if you work in a company long enough you are entitled to a pay raise or certain extra cash incentives.

But if you’re being quiet fired you don’t get any pay raise or financial incentive.

To make matters worse, you may even suffer a pay cut.

Employers who are quiet firing their employees don’t believe there’s any reason to pay them more, as that’ll only cause them to stay.

So if you’re due for a raise or eligible for a financial incentive and everyone else has received theirs but you haven’t.

Chances are that you’re being quiet fired.

4. You Aren’t Getting New Tasks

Employers who are quiet firing an employee would never want you to grow in the company.

So there shall be no growth opportunities for you like giving you a new task or project to oversee or carry out.

You would be stuck doing the same thing you’ve been previously doing or something even worse.

Your employer would make sure there are no opportunities for you to grow, learn more, and make an impact in the company.

A boss who is quiet firing a worker would tell the worker there’s no need for that or give a silly excuse if the worker asked to take on more or new projects.

5. You’re Not Being Support

Employers that want their employees to quit don’t care about their experience in the workplace.

And this will come to light when the targeted employee tries to get any kind of support from the employer or management.

The employee’s requests are never taken into consideration, the employer doesn’t care if they have a problem with their office, other workers or suffer from bullying/ discrimination.

To them(the employer) you’re about to be a thing of the past so why bother making you more comfortable?

Most times you’re treated unfairly or unequally and watching your colleagues enjoy better treatment can be quite heartbreaking.

Your needs and wants are usually overlooked subtly, but there’s still a sharp contrast between how you are treated in comparison to other workers.

6. You’re Not Given Feedback

The only thing you’re fed when being quiet fired is silence.

The perpetrators of quiet firing never respond or offer any kind of counsel to their employees.

If you’re being quiet fired you are likely to never hear from your employer no matter the situation.

You’re very unlikely to receive any praise or criticism on a project.

There is usually a break in communication between you and your employer. Your employer usually ignores you.

If there’s any communication between both of you, it’s usually quite vague and not concise.

Important information is usually left out, or relayed inaccurately.

Dealing With Being Quiet Fired

If you believe that you’re being quiet fired, just know that there are steps you can take to address it.

First, confirm that you are in forced being forced to quit.

If you look at all the signs mentioned above from no support, no feedback, stagnancy, no raise, etc and you’ve experienced the majority of them, you can confirm that you are actually being quiet fired.

In some cases, it is best that you quit, in others it’s best you take certain steps to secure your job.

But before doing that you have to document everything you’ve experienced, both the good and the bad. You should also learn about the rules of the company and be ready to take legal steps. But only if you want to.

Dealing with quiet firing can be quite traumatizing, so ensure your decision will protect your mental health.

No matter your decision, the NetWerk community is always here to provide you with the resources you’ll need.