Are you working more than ever and being tapped for more responsibilities at work, but your title and pay don’t reflect it? There’s a name for that: quiet promotions.
With the recent increase in inflation-induced layoffs and the uptick of worker quitting during the height of the Great Resignations over the past few years, the lone survivors at companies have been forced to pick up the slack, even if the duties are above their pay grade.
Participants in a June 2020 survey were asked if they thought their workload had increased while working from home during the coronavirus pandemic. A majority at 55.2 percent of respondents said that they felt there was an increase in their workload during their time working at home. According to data mining firm Statista, participants in a June 2020 survey were asked if they thought their workload had gotten larger while working from home during the coronavirus pandemic. 55.2 percent of respondents said that they felt there was a significant increase in their workload during their time working at home. In another report, 50% of workers skip lunch due to an excessive workload.
Additionally JobSage reported that 78% of workers have experienced an increased workload with no additional compensation and 67% said they took on the work of a coworker who exited their role.
Although more being assigned more responsibility signals that your employer trusts you, it’s important to protect yourself if you’re quietly promoted because if you’re not careful, it could lead to discontentment or even worse, burnout. So what do you do if you find yourself in that situation?
How to handle a quiet promotion.
One expert says the best way to manage a quiet promotion is head on, and loudly.
“If you don’t speak up for yourself, no one is going to speak up on your behalf,” said Jennifer Walton, chief brand officer at Sky Nile Consulting in an interview with Worklife. “No one is going to say ‘wow, you’ve been doing all this work and we’re going to reward you out of nowhere. Sometimes it’s explicit, like when someone goes on maternity leave and you have to act in an interim role. But usually you notice your work plan starts to evolve more and more. The way it’s positioned is ‘let’s give you an opportunity and chance.”
Walton says it’s best to take control at the onset.
“Now is the time to really dig deep and figure out how to advocate for yourself,” said Walton. “Prepare for these conversations.”
