The labor market pendulum is beginning to swing back in the favor of employers, but staffing shortages and controlling workforce costs are expected to continue to be a challenge for finance leaders for the foreseeable future.
CFOs and hospital executive leaders focused on improving productivity should be aware of the trends and terms shaping the workforce and how they could affect their teams.
Here are eight trending workforce terms leaders should know in 2024, according to cfo.com:
1. Resenteeism. A natural successor to "quiet quitting," resenteeism describes employees who stay in their jobs only because they can't afford to quit. It is a sarcastic play on presenteeism, which is when employees show up to their jobs, but only to be visibly there for their manager rather than to engage fully.
2. Rage Applying. This term debuted on TikTok and describes workers who emotionally apply to numerous jobs at once, mainly due to dissatisfaction with their current job. CFOs who want to build successful teams — and employees seeking career growth — should prioritize quality of fit for open positions, according to cfo.com. This quality is not prioritized with "rage applying," which can lead to employers losing talent and employees earning a reputation as a job hopper.
3. Acting Your Wage. The #actyourwage hashtag has driven millions of views across social media platforms as workers refuse to take extra hours or assume responsibilities outside their job descriptions. CFOs aiming to have a positive effect on their employees' careers should create a meritocracy, but be aware when team members evaluate the benefits and costs differently, which can become a workplace inhibitor, according to the report. Frequent and effective communication from leaders, as well as clear paths on growth opportunities and career progression for employees, is the antidote.
4. Lazy Girl Jobs. Coined by TikToker Gabrielle Judge, this term refers to the desire for jobs that require minimal effort while providing a good salary and work-life balance. The term, which is not limited to women, is the type of job that is work from home, not too technical, decent paying, and doesn't have difficult performance goals to achieve.
5. Career Cushioning. This workforce trend describes employees who are looking for "plan B" jobs and who are networking or job board scanning to prepare for the possibility of layoffs. The job market is becoming increasingly virtual and workers are becoming more proactive as economic uncertainty persists. "Career cushioning" refers to the increased maintenance required to track the availability of jobs and update online resumes and profiles with future opportunities in mind, according to the report. CFOs should be proactive and aware of how their teams think about this kind of risk and prepare to have options.
6. Boreout. In contrast to burnout, "boreout" is when staff feel overworked because they are fed up with being bored. CFOs can actively assess their teams' engagement, foster collaboration with other departments or use technology to eliminate redundant work. CFOs should be aware of this trend, which has deterred some young people from pursuing accounting, according to cfo.com.
7. Bare Minimum Mondays. This term refers to employees who come to work to only do the bare minimum on a Monday. While a natural reaction might be for leadership to a return to office policy that includes Mondays, enforcement and engagement can present a challenge to an organization's culture. While the idea may make managers squirm, doing less at work can potentially yield better health outcomes, according to Alaina Tiani, PhD, a clinical health psychologist and behavioral sleep medicine specialist at Cleveland Clinic's Sleep Disorders Center.
8. QuitTok. Young professionals are posting videos about their resignations on social media — and in some cases encouraging others to leave their jobs — using the hashtag #quittok. The workplace trend follows "quiet quitting," in which workers stayed in their roles but put in less effort. QuitTok can be a double-edged sword. It can bring greater accountability to leaders and how they let go of employees, but can also cause those employees to be unhirable after posting negative videos to social media platforms.