- Millions of employees quit or switched jobs during the "Great Resignation."
- Surveys suggest that many now regret that decision.
- Those who stayed say they benefited from promotions and a sense of camaraderie.
Devin Walsh, an account executive at Haymaker PR, was hired full-time following an internship at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. During the "Great Resignation," which was fueled by employees' demand for better pay and benefits, Walsh said she received countless offers on LinkedIn for roles that paid as much as $30,000 more than what she was making. But she said the money wasn't worth risking the work environment and career growth she already had.
"I think you'd rather be happy every day and work with people that you truly do respect and help you grow rather than having maybe what is very tempting — more money," Walsh told Insider.
Many employees part of the record number of Americans who quit their jobs in late 2021 say they now regret it. Those who stayed put said their loyalty so paid off.
As of April, over 4 million Americans quit every month for 11 months in a row, leaving many employers scrambling to fill roles. In April 2022, 4.4 million Americans submitted resignation letters, according to the latest data release from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
However, many who switched or left their roles altogether are now regretting their move, according to a June Joblist survey. More than a quarter of the 628 people who switched jobs that were surveyed said they regretted quitting their previous roles, and 42% said their new roles have "not lived up to their expectations."
Walsh said she was able to develop in her career, receiving several raises, and being promoted in the past two years. She said she stayed at her company in spite of enticing offers because she enjoyed the work environment.
"That been really crucial in keeping me around because I do feel super valued. I feel like my thoughts matter and like my growth matters," she said.
Jessica Fonseca, the COO of PinkShark PR, a public relations agency located in Los Angeles, California, said she also stayed at her company because she valued the work culture.
"I didn't really see any purpose in leaving. Being on LinkedIn, you get hit by head hunters constantly and, I just didn't see a point because I was actually enjoying what I was doing for a company that I felt really appreciated what I was doing," Fonseca told Insider.
"It was getting established and it was extremely important and beneficial for me to be a part of a company that actually listened to my voice and saw the benefit of working with companies that shared a similar mission, a similar vision, and had a real purpose behind it," Fonseca said.
For Jovanny Rosado, camaraderie and open communication kept him out of the Great Resignation despite a number of other offers. After initially switching employers in February 2020, a month before the WHO declared the novel coronavirus outbreak to be a pandemic, Rosado returned to his job as an account executive by November 2020. A remote work environment and a slower pace pulled him back, he said.
"The camaraderie that I had already built, I felt like I very much needed that, especially during the pandemic," he told Insider. "Having someone, whether it's next to you in a cubicle or just in an office and just people that I had really kind of made friends with that I knew and that really made the work easy."
Rosado attributed open communication with his employer and the ability to discuss compensation and benefits as another reason he stayed.
David Triana, a publicist at the Florida-based public relations company Otter, told Insider the "Great Resignation" helped him advance in his career because as colleagues left, he got the opportunity to take on new responsibilities.
"It's allowed me to really thrive and do really great work because as these vacancies have been filled," Triana said. "I feel like I've been given a lot more responsibility and maybe more opportunities that I wouldn't have had regardless or if these people would've stayed because they were there a lot longer than I was."
"In a weird way, it did help me grow in my career and has really allowed me to do a lot of cool things," he added.
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