“Quiet quitting is when employees make a concerted decision to perform their duties exactly according to their work contract, but they're actually not giving their full commitment, so employers aren't getting discretionary effort, innovation and loyalty — and employees are disengaged," Steve Pemberton, chief HR officer at Workhuman, explains to Benefits Canada.

"Quiet quitting is a culture killer and can lead to more significant HR issues, such as lack of retention and increased recruiting costs. The real threat to employers is that, if left unaddressed, employees who are quietly quitting may move from being passively to actively disengaged and encourage their co-workers to do the same," he continues.

"Some signs of 'quiet quitting' are unexplained absences and turnover. Other signs are more subtle, such as turning off a camera during video-conferencing meetings or when employees aren't actively participating. But he acknowledges many of the signs aren't always detectable early on, which is why employers should survey, assess and review their workforce," Pemberton describes.

Designing an Employee Engagement program takes time because it has to fit the company's culture and the employees' needs with the employers' resources. Still, these are the 13 best practices for engaged and loyal employees according to Employee Recognition expert company Nectar. Try them and avoid 'quiet quitting' and 'career cushioning' within your teams!

1. Gather and act on employee feedback
2. Recognize and appreciate frequently
3. Offer incentives and perks
4. Create a positive, safe work environment
5. Trust and empower your people
6. Be a loyal manager
7. Align employees with your company vision
8. Remove uncertainty
9. Be Human-centric instead of profit-centric
10. Resolve disputes
11. Open lines of communication
12. Invest in their development
13. Offer a flexible work schedule