Join our Waitlist for Expert Advice!

U.S. Labor Secretary Marty Walsh Says 'I Haven't Really Heard About' Quiet Quitting In an interview last week, Secretary Walsh said he speaks to a lot of CEOs — and none of them have brought up the online buzzword "quiet quitting."

By Gabrielle Bienasz

Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

Anna Moneymaker I Getty Images
Labor Secretary Marty Walsh in September 2022 at the White House Rose Garden.

Quiet quitting is something you're hearing about in the news (and we're guilty, too) — but it hasn't come up in some of the highest levels of government.

U.S. Labor Secretary Marty Walsh said in an interview with Yahoo Finance that while he talks to a host of companies around the nation, none of them have brought up "quiet quitting."

"As I've gone around the country this last month-- and I've done a lot of trips-- no company has approached me on this quiet quitting idea," Walsh said.

The secretary noted he saw "quiet quitting" plenty in the media. "Certainly, that's a concern if it continues on because when people hire people, they expect them to do a day's work for a day's pay," he added.

Quiet quitting is the idea of not doing more than your job requires to avoid burnout. It has also inspired a host of think pieces debating the relationship between life and work, post-pandemic, especially for white-collar workers.

A new survey found that a majority (57%) of a sample of full-time U.S employees noticed a coworker has quiet quit. Sixty-two percent said they are "annoyed" by the "quiet quitting trend."

It also inspired new buzzwords, or interest in old ones, from "quiet firing," when an employer treats someone poorly so they will leave, to "stealth layoffs," a term big law has used for decades to let employees go without firing them, thereby giving them time to find a job.

The interview with Walsh also touched on an interesting macroeconomic dynamic: Despite the Federal Reserve's course, to raise interest rates to slow down the economy, which it has said will likely cause people to lose work, the jobs report was surprisingly bright for September.

Walsh said he thought increased interest in certain industries, including hospitals re-hiring to cover elective surgeries, and manufacturing starting up again post-pandemic, was driving the surge.

Despite layoffs hitting the tech industry, "A lot of companies are still hiring," he said. "You're still hearing it every day."
Gabrielle Bienasz is a staff writer at Entrepreneur. She previously worked at Insider and Inc. Magazine. 

Want to be an Entrepreneur Leadership Network contributor? Apply now to join.

Business News

You Have One Month Left to Buy a House, According to Barbara Corcoran. Here's Why.

"If you are planning on waiting a year and seeing where interest rates go, you are out of your mind," Corcoran said.

Thought Leaders

These 3 Trends Will Change What It Means to Be an Entrepreneur in 2025

Here are three entrepreneurship trends from the new Global Entrepreneurship Monitor report that are changing the landscape for the future.

Data & Recovery

Train Your Company to Avoid Costly Data Breaches With This $30 Bundle

Train in the eight domains of CISSP and protect your business from growing cyber threats.

Business News

These 3 Side Hustles Make the Most Money While Working Fewer Hours, According to a New Survey

The survey also found that having a side hustle doubled as a path to becoming more employable.

Side Hustle

I Made $14,000 in 1 Week With a Spontaneous Halloween Costume Side Hustle — Here's How

Sabba Keynejad was in art school when he started to refine his entrepreneurial skills.

Franchise

The McRib Is Back, But Only at Select McDonald's — Here's Where to Find It

This scarcity is nothing new. In 2022, McDonald's announced a "Farewell Tour" for the McRib, suggesting that it might be the last time customers could get their hands on it.