By Faten Omar

KUWAIT: Quiet quitting, a new trend is gaining traction as a popular movement on TikTok, having a staggering 110.5 million views from just the hashtag alone. People on TikTok participated in the trend saying that employees must do only their assigned tasks, leave the office on time, and do not accept extra work, while others say it’s a misnomer and should be defined as carving out time to take care of yourself.

Speaking to Kuwait Times, Ali Ahmad a 25-year old Public Relations Officer in Kuwait, said, “At the beginning of any job, you are excited, looking for the best thing you have to offer. You want to work hard to invest in your dream career. You will be enthusiastic and pressure yourself to work hard, hoping that it brings promising results in the future, and then you do not see them. That is when you start quiet quitting.”

He explained “I started quiet quitting after I noticed that my hard work was not appreciated. I noticed that I wasted my time, life, and effort for nothing. People around me were promoted because they had influential connections in the office, while I was working hard with less salary and with no promotion in sight. You see others work less and earn more, while I wasted effort, time, and energy, and no one cared. It caused a psychological problem for me because of these issues, and the issue slowly affects your physical health and you see your passion die down.”

Abdullah Khalil, 34, accountant, told Kuwait Times that quiet quitting is a big part of people’s work routine in Kuwait, adding “Most employees do not feel appreciated and tend to do the work exactly like they are supposed to do, not more and not less. Workers are now setting out to establish clear work-life boundaries to reduce their stress, but without being taken off, of the company payroll.” He noted that the new trend made several people speak out about how they work, to retain a healthy work-life balance while staying at their current jobs, explaining that there were many workers who quit their jobs later on, because of low pay, no opportunities for advancement, and feeling disrespected at work.

Meanwhile, Tarek Ahmed, 31, architectural engineer, said “In my point of view, quiet quitting is how people protest at not being appreciated and is usually seen among employees who suffer from work fatigue after working at the same place for more than 3 years. In my case, I started noticing that the firm I work for differentiated between candidates based on their nationality with benefits that a normal candidate can never get unless they have ten years or more of work experience which is unfair, especially if you’re a fresh grad. Yes, I do know we don’t live in a fair world, but we do live in the same one.”

“Ever since I realized this fact, I gave in minimum efforts at work, since I have nowhere to go due to my governmental project visa which doesn’t allow transfers to different firms, making it a clear form of modern slavery. Consequently, finding myself trapped, I found no other way and quiet quitting seemed to be the best option, especially in the current economic climate,” Ahmed expressed his disappointment to Kuwait Times. Ahmed also pointed out that people seek appreciation for their efforts and when they do not get it, they either quit and look for a better opportunity or must suffer to fulfill their responsibilities, adding - “Why should we give in our best efforts, sacrificing time, health and sanity for nothing? This is a question every quiet quitter asks themselves to justify their actions.”

He added that people shouldn’t be doing more work than they have to, and that just doing the work that you’re paid for should be the standard. Meanwhile, Huda Kimouch, 26, a teacher, believes that the term, quiet quitting, stems from companies exploiting their employees and high-lights the culture of excessive labor without additional pay benefits practiced by these companies, adding out that if companies want creative and quality work, they should pay them for the extra work.

“Employers benefit financially from workers doing extra work without compensation and it is reasonable for employees to push back against that. As a teacher when I do my task with no passion, it will reflect on the children. Quiet quitting is not a good move for the company’s owners, client, or the mental health of the employee,” she noted