The Big Quit

Entering the third year of COVID-19, second for Taiwan, the world is forever changed. Countries fight for vaccines, companies fight for vaccine efficacy, and some people fight because they are anti-vaxxers. All of which is just an episode of our global drama that we won't focus on. This week, let's think about how the pandemic changed the way people live, job-wise. More importantly, let's think about the opportunity that it gives us.

This experience varies from person, in industry, and across region. Take Taiwan for instance. Similar to people in other countries, the service industry is heavily impacted, especially travel agencies, restaurants, whatnot. Among the hardships, a phenomenon is particularly interesting. In the U.S., there is this so-called "the great resignation", which is an economic trend that employees resign willingly from their jobs.

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 4 million Americans quit their jobs in July 2021. Resignations peaked in April and have remained abnormally high for the last several months, with a record-breaking 10.9 million open jobs at the end of July. -Havard Business Review

What could cause people to give up their livelihoods? Surely the pandemic is temporary, people wouldn't have spent years building up a career and left so quickly, would they? No, they wouldn't.

Aside from government policies such as shutdowns or other protective measures, people quit their jobs during the pandemic because it has forced them to rethink their lives. Employers who were malevolent to employees only worsen during this period. As unpaid leaves, pay cuts, or bankruptcy frauds become more frequent, we all need to ponder this question:

Is the job really worth it?

There are two kinds of people in the labor force, the ones for the money, and the ones for the calling. Ironically, both of which may be victims of bad work culture are subjects to exploitation. A lot of people were sent back home from work during the lockdowns with or without pay. While that seems bad in many ways financially, people soon realized that there was A LOT of time to examine the way they live whether that be with family, work, or self-discovery.

More and more people are leaving but may not be for another job. Many of them simply left and stayed where they are, home! Note that this trend is primary in the U.S. It isn't that people in Taiwan don't reflect but that the Coronavirus Relief Fund(U.S.) allows Americans to do the rethinking. Besides, we Taiwanese or Asians, have more than just money burdened on our shoulders. We (TW), although not for all, are taught to accept life as it is, to "suck it up" even. There's pressure from all aspects but to trace them to their origin, it's the family name.

Everyone has their issues in the family. Though the only way is that we deal with it by ourselves, the right way is not "compromise" as they say. Sadly, between the past and the present, we must choose to be accountable for our own fate. The coronavirus, surprisingly, serves as a boost to change our destiny. We cannot choose to be born in different families but we certainly can choose to leave one that is preventing us from self-fulfillment.

The Americans are quitting their jobs so they can search for better ones. We Taiwanese need to quit the twisted family relationship in order to truly live for ourselves. Lunar New Year's coming soon. Why not make a bold move and just tell them once and for all?

#selfreflect