The Great Resignation: one in five Aussies quit their jobs last year

Shocking figures have revealed millions of Aussies changed jobs last year and with The Great Resignation looming there’s more pain to come for employers.

One in five Aussies changed their jobs last year and a quarter are currently considering leaving their workplace, new research from National Australia Bank has found.

The findings support predictions that The Great Resignation, a phenomenon which has been playing out in the US with everyone from frontline workers to senior executives quitting their jobs, is expected to bite in Australia from March.

For those Australians considering changing jobs, over one in three said the pandemic had a big impact on their decision.

Reasons for wanting to quit included a lack of personal fulfilment, purpose or meaning, career limitations, mental health concerns and poor pay and benefits, the research showed.

Other key drivers for wanting to change jobs included poor work-life balance, burnout and needing a fresh start.

Aussie workers are burnt out and are looking for new jobs. Picture: iStock

Julie Rynski, NAB executive for business bank said the pandemic had shifted the expectations of Australian workers and employers now need to work harder to retain talent.

“There are a number of theories why the Great Resignation might be happening but a heightened sense of mortality and burnout due to extra work particularly among frontline essential workers is certainly high on the list,” she said.

“A strong rebound in the labour market is also giving people confidence they will find another job if they make the jump.”

The unemployment rate hit a 13-year-low sitting at 4.2 per cent for January.

NAB’s research also found there could be a big shake up set for some sectors as around three in 10 Aussies are planning to change the industry they currently work in.

For those who have already embraced The Great Resignation, job turnover was greatest for general unskilled workers, with almost four in 10 indicating they had changed jobs in the past year, followed by labourers and other IT and technology workers.

One in five workers have already quit. Picture: iStock

Yet, there have been unusually low levels of employee turnover in Australia with the latest data from February showing an all time low since the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) started tracking labour mobility in 1972.

The ABS data suggests 7.5 per cent of employed people aged 15 and over or around 1.1 million changed jobs — down from a peak of 19.5 per cent in 1988-89.

Recent research from Elmo Software also found 43 per cent of workers are planning to search for a new job in 2022 and a third are planning to quit their jobs as soon as they secure a new position.

However, nearly a fifth of Aussies are so fed up they plan to quit without another job lined up.

A fifth of workers plan to quit with no job to go to. Picture: iStock

Workers are expecting increased wages, more flexibility, more annual leave, a promotion and the ability to work remotely, according to Elmo’s findings.

Relaunch Me founder and career coach Leah Lambert said the main reason Australians were quitting their jobs was “extreme burnout” due to heavy workloads, long stretches without holidays and remote working conditions.

“They’ve just got to a point where they can’t see an end in sight,” she told the Sydney Morning Herald.

Originally published as The Great Resignation: one in five Aussies quit their jobs last year