Quiet firing is one of those management terms that sounds soft but actually causes real damage.
The employee is not officially let go. Instead, their responsibilities shrink, feedback dries up and development stops. And over time, they are nudged out.
This is where strong management training becomes essential. Many managers simply do not feel equipped to handle difficult conversations or performance issues properly.
But quiet firing rarely solves anything!
It hurts morale, damages culture and negatively impacts performance across the business.
Let’s break down what quiet firing really looks like, how to spot it, and what better management looks like in practice.
Quiet firing happens when management teams create less-than-ideal working conditions for employees. They put the pressure on and the goal is simple… Get the underperforming employee to quit!
Quiet firing isn’t a good thing. Tactics such as pushing off an employee’s earned raise or isolating an employee from other coworkers create unhealthy environments.
It is a non-confrontational way of managing your employees. A symptom of poor management style. And a big red-flag that the work environment is toxic.
Could you be “managing someone out?” Is this a strategy you’re using?
Let’s break down what happens in quiet firing.
It often occurs when management does not want an employee to remain employed. For some reason, they do not want or feel they cannot terminate that employee’s relationship with the company.
It can also be less calculated. In some cases, it can be a form of neglectful leadership.
If you are slowly forcing an employee out, whether intentionally or not, that could be an example of quiet firing
It typically occurs when there is a lack of:
In many cases, quiet firing isn’t something that happens immediately. It burns and worsens over time. Employees typically begin to feel unwelcome or unnecessary. They become displaced. And ultimately, they feel like leadership wants them out of their job. The process of having a conversation like this is hard and it can be uncomfortable for all involved.
Why would a company, human resource manager, or any other manager not just fire an employee?
Quiet firing at work happens for numerous reasons, such as:
Perhaps your remote employee does an okay job, but is resistant to returning to the office. You may need an employee who’s better suited for the job, but you lack a valid reason to terminate the current employee. You just want a more productive employee.
You may be thinking there’s no way you are engaging in this practice. Now that we have quiet firing explained, let’s examine whether your company could be guilty of it.
Chances are good that if you’re reading this, you already know it’s happening.
An employer reducing an employee’s responsibilities is an indication that they do not feel the employee has what it takes to meet the objectives. Often, the reduced responsibilities are those that are most desirable.
For example, companies may push back on the more challenging, motivational work to keep employees engaged in mundane tasks that are less vital.
A reduction in responsibilities could be because you know the employee isn’t meeting objectives. There’s something to be said, too, about whether your company gave the employee the tools and resources to do the job well. Still, if a business is reducing responsibilities, that’s an indication the employee may not be a good fit and could be on their way out.
A Gallup poll found that 80% of employees who say they received some form of meaningful feedback in the previous week were fully engaged and moving forward in supporting the company.
A lack of feedback is, in all ways, an indication of poor management. Without feedback, your employee does not know they are not meeting the mark. They don’t know how to improve. That may be what you want if you hope they are leaving.
It also makes sense that a company would pull back on the development investment in an employee. If you don’t want them around, why teach them? If you’re no longer putting time and resources into supporting the growth of the employee, for any reason, that indicates you are no longer invested in having that employee on board.
Isolation and exclusion are examples of quiet firing because they make the employee’s job tough. This could be physical. You may have moved the employee to a job that requires them to work deep in the mail room, where no one else works. Or it could be done by limiting their access to key projects and opportunities.
You could have a very good reason for doing so. Yet, if the underlying goal is to make that employee unhappy, that’s a sign you’re quiet firing rather than motivating and trying to improve employee performance.
Quiet firing at work may also occur when employers just make the job impossible. The best employees at the company could not meet timelines. You expect this employee to meet them.
You may be “challenging them” to “see what they can do” by giving them an unrealistic workload. Thoughts of “if they want the job, they’ll get the work done…” are an indication of quiet firing. It is also a component of irresponsible management.
Quiet firing may also be happening if the employee is no longer considered for promotions, pay raises, or other incentives. For whatever reason, you are no longer willing to put more time and money into this person. That could be deserved. It may not be, too.
People leave jobs for many reasons. Even the best companies will have turnover when there’s a poor fit. But, quiet firing has a direct (and indirect) impact on teams and businesses. You cannot ignore these specific areas.
Whether you believe quiet firing is happening to you or you know it’s become a component of your business’s management style, it’s simply not a good thing for anyone. Consider the implications of quiet firing on your team and your business as a whole.
Quiet firing impacts the employee you want to leave. It also impacts other employees within your company. What happens when your company develops quiet firing, whether intentionally or not?
Employees know what’s happening. Without a doubt, you can expect those employees whom you want to encourage to leave to lack motivation and engagement. But what about the other teams?
The other employees can recognise what’s happening as well. They notice not just your policies and processes, but how you undervalue people who work for you. Quiet firing isn’t a fair concept in any way. It’s often vindictive or an “I’ll get them attitude that ushers in the goal of dealing with an unwanted employee in an unprofessional manner.
Even if it’s less intentional, the rest of your team sees what could happen to them if they stick around or fail to meet expectations.
That’s not motivating to teams. Quiet firing makes them less likely to engage with your company or put their best foot forward. It may even encourage them to seek other employment before it happens to them.
It’s also critical to think about what quiet firing feels like to the person you’re pushing out the door. They feel undervalued. They don’t feel as if their work or dedication matters. The employee isn’t going to work harder when they already feel like they don’t matter or cannot do a good job.
In situations where your employee feels undervalued, think about what this means to their mental health. They are stressed and worried. If they don’t want to leave their job, or need it for financial reasons, they may become so anxious and stressed that they create significant mistakes.
A mental health breakdown isn’t something you want to deal with in the workplace. You also don’t want to make it “your fault” that an employee didn’t get the chance they deserved. Ultimately, quiet firing leads to stress and strain that’s not beneficial to anyone.
If you see the signs of quiet firing in your company, take a closer look at what this does not just to that employee but to the entire team. Note that your team sees what’s happening. This isn’t a hidden process by any means.
A toxic workplace is one that leads to poor performance for your company. What you do to one employee is recognised by others as a potential outcome for them as well. Consider what happens when quiet firing becomes your conflict management resolution strategy.
Teams need good communication and fair treatment to be successful. When quiet firing occurs, one team member is likely not getting fair treatment. That means they may not be contributing fairly. It may also mean that they are no longer a component of the whole “team” structure.
In some cases, the team member is a problem for other workers. They may make their job more challenging. That may be justification for why you want them gone, but quiet firing isn’t the ideal process for that. It strings along teams and demonstrates ineffective management.
Your team member is Googling things like “signs your boss is quietly firing you…” as they watch other team members go through this process. In reality, though, quiet firing creates adverse conditions for every person. Low morale is very common. A person may simply feel like what you are doing is unfair or that they may be next. That’s not motivating. It’s damaging to their sense of being valued.
Low morale also comes from the added pressure you’re putting on those team members. If you’re isolating or pulling key responsibilities and tasks from one person, you’re likely putting them on another. That means their job is more challenging due to this situation. Quiet firing management styles impact every day, every shift, and every person differently, but never in a good way.
A crucial aspect of being a successful manager is building trust. Employees look to their employer as someone who is going to lead them to success. They trust you to have their back. They also trust you to treat them fairly and to be honest with them.
When teams see quiet firing happening at work, they start to question that trust. Are you really telling them everything? Do you truly believe what you say when you offer a performance review to them? Any of these types of questions creates a level of difficulty for employees.
Quiet firing results in changes to business performance. Now, it is critical to see that having the wrong employee in any position isn’t ideal either. If an employee cannot provide a good level of workmanship or is damaging client relationships, that’s not good either. But, in those cases, why keep the employee around any longer?
Consider the implications for business performance if you employ a quiet firing methodology for managing your team.
Productivity drops. It’s not just that employee. It’s all of them. No one is going to work as hard for you as you expect them to if they lack the respect for you as a manager. That will happen, they will lose respect for an employer or manager who is not open and honest in supporting employees.
Work may no longer be accomplished as well as it was. Your employees may be under too much pressure or may lack motivation. Feeling unwanted leads to an ongoing threat of no longer putting in the hard work.
Staff turnover is expensive. As you look at these quiet firing examples, know that, in the long term, one of two things can happen:
Staff turnover cuts into your production, productivity, efficiency, and employer reputation.
Handling quiet firing situations in a fair manner is an important way to change the way your business operates. Here’s what to do now if you’re facing a history of quiet firing but are ready for change.
Provide employees with accurate, honest, and detailed performance reviews. Praise in public, but have a private meeting to discuss what’s not working. Set up a timeline for the recovery of that employee’s skills and performance. If there is no more “give” to that employee, be honest that there’s no longer a good fit.
Feedback must be clear. Don’t say, “You’re doing good” when you meet; instead, say, “You’re meeting the bare minimum and not what I expected.” Provide accurate and detailed examples of what the employee is not doing well. This gives them the ability to make substantial changes to improve, or not.
Ensure there are core development plans in place for all team members. That means that every person should know what their educational and learning goals are. There should also be a plan in place to help them reach that point.
When there are instances where you need to discuss what’s happening, do so clearly. Document what happened and create a log of communication between you and the employee. Set clear goals with measurable expectations. Document what happens in detail.
Having routine performance discussions takes the fear out of the process. Do this early on to give new employees the ability to make substantial changes. Then, set up routine performance discussions as often as necessary. This makes it clear what the employee needs to do.
Management should prevent quiet firing. Preventing it allows you to create fairness and build trust. It also alleviates the frustrations of other team members.
Provide your managers with the information and tools they need to have those difficult conversations.
No one likes to tell an employee they are not doing a good job. Yet, if your management team knows how to have those conversations, they are less likely to push them off. Skills training in managing teams is a critical component to building successful leaders in your company.
As a business, equipping your team to navigate challenging situations is key to success. If your managers do not have a way to gauge and manage underperformance, you are setting them up for risks associated with quiet firing. For example, if an employee is doing a poor job and not meeting objectives, is your manager just fixing the work for them? Are they providing actionable advice and guidance to the employee to help them improve?
Consider, too, what your managers tell you about employees. For example, if an underperforming employee is not meeting expectations, does the manager have a way to track improvement? Moreover, have they spoken to the employee and initiated a conversation about how to achieve improvement? If not, they may be lacking the skills to do so.
Leadership is about good communication, effective motivation, and leading with confidence in hard times. If you’re seeing the signs of quiet firing in your company right now, that means each one of these areas is struggling. It means that your leadership teams are not creating a fair and transparent process for managing their teams.
Remember that being a charismatic leader is great, but to achieve this, there must be a sense of fairness, trust, and transparency. If your team isn’t meeting those goals, it’s costing you.
If these quiet firing examples are making it clear that your company needs to make some changes, there are several steps you can take now.
First, recognise and teach your management team how to spot quiet firing, why it happens, and how to prevent it. Teach them (and realise yourself as their leader) that quiet firing directly damages culture and performance.
However, if you are seeing quiet firing at work, that’s a clear indication of a need for change. Managers must have the skills they need to address issues fairly. Management skills training and a well-designed leadership training course will make the difference here.
Consider the investment in a management development programme that teaches the core skills necessary to handle less-than-ideal employees in an effective manner. And set up some time to conduct a wellbeing at work survey as well. Find out what your team really sees and feels is happening.
Remember… quiet firing isn’t a good look for your company. It also doesn’t have to happen and learn how to effectively avoid and improve these situations, building a stronger, well-managed business.
Written by Sean McPheat
CEO of MTD Training and Amazon bestselling author. Sean writes about leadership, business, and personal growth, drawing on 20+ years of experience helping over 9,000 companies improve performance.
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Updated on: 24 July, 2025
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