'The big quit' as millions leave jobs in US - BBC News

Millions of Americans are leaving their jobs in what economists are calling "the great resignation".

2021 has seen a huge number of people in the US change their careers - last month four million quit their jobs.

BBC's US correspondent Michelle Fleury went to meet people in Kentucky, where people are quitting at a higher rate than in many other states.

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[yordy]

There is no worker shortage. There is a wage shortage.

[jxnathanmark]

Managers have seem to have lost human compassion and empathy. How could you threat someone’s job when their daughter may have cancer and miss peoples funerals. Simply unbelievable. Treat your staff right and they will stay.

[CheekyLove]

I've ended buying Iphones, name brand clothes and accessories, ended my Amazon account, ended Netflix, HBO, Disney. This is something that I continue to strive for. There are more economical alternatives that do support the consumer instead of filling the wallets of corporate giants. When one starts supporting local and small businesses that treat their employees right, it feels better and creates a better community.

[KillrTfuuu]

People are tired of being called essential, yet being paid as if you're disposable.

[Joshifying]

The man who couldn’t go to his grandfathers funeral because of work and getting written up....that is offensive to the human race, his employers should be ashamed and I hope when they meet their makers they will have to answer to what they did to others on earth.

[Mizerableklaha]

I quit my airport job for this reason, It was literally killing me. I run my own little store now, earn less but I am much happier and healthier.

[tacoscabeza]

My heart goes out to all those people who weren't treated as they should be in those jobs. They deserve better and I'm glad they took steps to get themselves out.

[harmeharkhanna]

The right of workers to earn a living wage, have safe working conditions and live with dignity should always be respected and upheld.

[aberjack]

This is one of the greatest things to come out of this mess. Don’t give your life to a company that will replace you tomorrow without a second thought

[Xaera]

the last 50 years, employers made sure to constantly remind us how lucky we were to have a job. Now its time for the next 50 years where employers should realize how lucky they are to have us workers.

[AngelOuttaFocus]

I think one of the things that came out of the pandemic was people realizing the futility of working jobs that just don't pay the bills. If the option is to work and not be able to afford cost of living and not work and not be able to afford the cost of living then why work? A point of wage hopelessness and housing unaffordability has been reached that we are going to have a tough time coming back from. I work for a staffing agency hiring in one of these markets, and it's really tough finding people willing to work for even $25-$30/hr when the average house is over half a million dollars, and is snapped up by property management companies that can offer thousands cash above asking price to beat out "normal people" and then turn it around as a rental property for vacationers that is unaffordable for the local working population.

[DanielSilva-gfkk]

Simple as this for me: I changed jobs after 20 months without being able to go home to see my family. The most important sentence I heard from the person who hired me at my current job was " There's nothing more important than health and family" I knew right there that he was the kind of person I wanted to work for.

[laforce]

It's so funny to watch economists attempt to explain this "phenomenon" other than people just want to be treated like humans.

[pauld.b]

I walked off my job of 8 years this summer because I was simply being taken advantage of. My workload increased by like 4x and at times I was the only employee left, but my pay didn't increase at all. After a crazy week where I made the company a buttload of money and handled far more than I should, working 14 hour days, I got a bonus of 50$ in my check and a pat on the back. That was nearly the last straw. Employers profits are up and our wages are way down. Not to mention how the dollar has fallen in the past 2 years. I'm sick of it and I'm starting my own business. Ill never work for anyone else again. I'm not doing all the work while making pennies on the dollar.

[jjk]

I feel so bad for Josh. His grandparents… his daughter… that’s a lot to take in. I hope his daughter is recovering well.

[jrighteous]

I was working 55 to 60 hours a week before the pandemic, once pandemic hit, I realized that being home with my wife and kids was far more valuable than anything in the world, so I cashed out my annuity acct to pay off my house and all our debt, I now have spent the last year only working 24 to 28 hours a week ! I plan to stay this way as long as possible. Me and my family are much happier !

[christieomojo]

Some of these employers are inhumane. The man who's daughter was sick, given no flexibility at all its sickening I'm glad he left. I have no sympathy for businesses struggling to hire. We all remember how they mercilessly fired people with little to no severance, while pocketing bailout money. Finally some karma!

[jordanlester]

The old saying applies “people don’t quit jobs; they quit bosses.”

[deftoneu]

He’s right I deal with customers every day and I almost feel like a therapist.

[lavorbitor]

I'm working for a pharmaceutical company here in the UK. When the pandemic started, they changed our contracts and they made them worst. They took advantage of our fear and uncertainty. I'll probably quit in a few weeks time. The point is, i think that this case applies to many other companies therefore i'm not surprised many people are quitting