The coining of the term Great Resignation is attributed to Anthony Klotz who used the phrase in a short article for Bloomberg news in May 2021. Klotz, an organizational psychologist at Texas A&M University, predicted that the pandemic would make a significant number of American workers reevaluate what they are actually getting out of their jobs. Klotz based his theory on four observations: pent-up resignations from the first year of the pandemic; mass burnout among workers on the front lines; a reprioritization of life priorities when confronted by a deadly pandemic; and the freedom that came with working from home. Klotz predicted a Great Resignation before it was apparent in any labour market data. In subsequent months, when the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that a record number of Americans had quit their jobs, the term became (and remains) an embedded narrative about the Pandemic’s long-term impact on worker behaviour. While first applied to the

U.S. labour market in 2021, within the next 12 months, commentators across the globe saw signs of the Great Resignation in the UK, Australia, and France. Countries like Germany, Singapore, and Canada conducted various surveys that indicated workers there were reevaluating work/life priorities and had a general dissatisfaction with working conditions, uninspiring jobs, and corporate culture.

By the time Beyoncé dropped her seventh studio album Renaissance in the summer of 2022, the phrase Great Resignation had leapt from being a labour market buzz word into pop culture. Indeed, Beyonce’s song Break My Soul was heralded as an anti-work anthem for the Great Resignation by a diverse array of voices ranging from music fans to Forbes. As the number of resignations in the U.S. continued to set records through spring 2022, the topic of the Great Resignation became part of the pandemic story. Indeed, in April of 2022 the Human Resource Professional Association of Canada indicated that the Great Resignation wasn’t just a 2021 phenomenon, but was likely to get worse (“Is the Great Resignation Over? Not Even Close”). They noted: “What’s unfolding is not just the Great Resignation (the symptom) but the Great Prioritization (the cause). Simply put, people are putting a greater focus on well-being, health (physical, social and mental), family (childcare and/ or aging parents) and other hobbies and interests – and by extension, taking the time to consider who they work for, how they work, and why they work.” (Seghal, April 6, 2022)

As economists began to examine the labour force data in detail, additional light was cast on the possible cause(s) and nature of the Great Resignation. Fuller and Kerr in the Harvard Business Review indicated that Covid-19 accelerated several existing labour market trends and wasn’t just short- term turbulence provoked by the pandemic. Instead, they saw increasing worker quits as a continuation of an existing trend of rising quit rates. They attributed these quits to an aging workforce; reconsideration of life priorities; reshuffling (moving to different jobs in the same or between sectors—instead of completely leaving the labor market); and the caregiving of aging parents. Fuller and Kerr conclude that the Great Resignation was no anomaly, and that the forces underlying it are here to stay.

Since 1976, Statistics Canada has been collecting data every month for a selected sample of individuals from across Canada (primarily provinces) on a rotating six-month basis. An individual is surveyed for six months with roughly one-sixth of the full sample being replaced every month. The survey collects demographic information and current employment status. For those not working or no longer working or temporarily not working, additional information on status and reasons and other activities is collected. Specific information on “job leavers” is also collected.

The data presented below is all from the LFS (summary files or public use micro data) and is for all of Ontario. When appropriate, Statistics Canada has provided the sample weights used to develop full population estimates and shares from the stratified samples.

First, let’s consider the composition of the workforce and total working age population (for this analysis those 25 and older are considered to avoid complications from those attending a post-secondary school).

Table 1 : Population of Ontario (2022)
*to the nearest hundred

Employed	6,704,000
Unemployed	324,800
Total: Labour Force	7,028,800
Not in the Labour Force	3,631,500
Total: Working Age Population	10,660,300

 

Chart 1 shows the share of Ontario’s working-age population Not in Labour Force, Employed, and Unemployed over time. With some fluctuation in unemployment, over the 47 years (1976-2022) the shares have remained fairly steady with roughly one-third (33%) not in the labour force, 63% employed and 4% unemployed.

Table 3 below shows the average of the share of workers in each year by the reason reported from 1976 to 2022 and 2020-2022. The shares vary across the years and over time. The most noticeable is the increase in retirement with corresponding decreases in the other reasons.

Table 3: Reason for Leaving Job, Then & Now

Reason for Leaving Job	Average (1976–2022)	Average (2020–2022)
Own Illness or Disability	16.5%	15.5%
Personal or Family Reasons	16.3%	13.5%
Going to School	9.7%	10.3%
Dissatisfied	13.2%	13.0%
Retired	27.3%	34.4%
Other Reasons	17.1%	13.2%

In 1976, retirement was cited by 18.3% of job leavers, while in 2022, 40.4% reported they left their job due to retirement.

If just looking at the shares of job leavers with retirements excluded (Chart 3), Illness or Disability has remained flat while Going to School and Dissatisfied have seen slight increases with Personal/Family Reasons and Other slightly decreasing.

The charts do not show an increase in people leaving jobs from dissatisfaction (maybe with a bump from 2021 to 2022, but at 21.3% the share is lower than some other years in 2010-2022 and several other years in 1976-2022 with a maximum of 22.4% in 2000).

Again, the Labour Force Survey data does not show evidence of individuals leaving jobs for different reasons than they have been leaving jobs previously.

It is possible that during the worst of the global pandemic individuals were leaving jobs for personal health and safety reasons to avoid exposure risk that they wouldn’t necessarily characterize as an Illness or Disability, but that is conjecture. Whatever the case, while “Other” spiked in 2020, it returned to average within 2 years.

Immigration:

In general, differences between working and not working

• If landed 10 years or less, much more likely to be working
• If landed more than 10 years ago, more likely to be not working
• If not an immigrant, little difference
• The results for 2022/2023 are consistent with the result for 2019/2020

Industry (of job last worked or current job):

Not a lot of difference in likelihood of working or not working based on industry

• Some industries show greater churn with a greater likelihood of not working if working in: Construction, Retail, Information/ Culture, Education Services, Accommodation/Food Services
• Some industries show “anti-churn” (greater stability) with a greater likelihood of working if in: Finance/Insurance, Professional et Services, Healthcare
• The results for 22/23 are very similar to the results from 19/20 with two notable exceptions:
• Construction does not show the same churn in 22/23. Those in construction are equally likely to be working or not while in 19/20 they were more likely to be not working.
• Accommodation/Food Services jobs greatly increased their level of churn in 22/23. In both periods, these jobs were more likely to have people not working, but in 22/23 the likelihood of working went down while the likelihood of not working went up.

Occupation (of job last worked or current job):

• Not a lot of difference in likelihood of working or not based on
• In 19/20 the likelihood of not working was higher for those working in Trades and Transportation jobs. By 22/23, the likelihood of not working was equal to the likelihood of This was also reflected in the industry results for Construction and so supports the contention that in the recent timeframe, Trades work is more stable.

Flows into Unemployment

• 2019/2020, Job Leavers accounted for 10% of all those currently without employment.
• In 2022/2023, Job Leavers accounted for 6% of all those currently without employment.
• In comparison to the baseline, the number of people without employment who were that way because they left a job, decreased.

The table below shows the average of the share of workers by their reason for leaving their job as reported between 2019–2020 and 2022–2023.

 

Table 4(A): Reason for Leaving Job During the Previous Year

Reason	Average (2019/2020)	Average (2022/2023)
Other Reasons	2.9%	2.8%
Own Illness/Disability	5.1%	5.1%
Caring for Children	1.4%	1.3%
Pregnancy	1.4%	1.2%
Personal/Family Responsibility	2.4%	3.1%
Going to School	24.6%	18.0%
Dissatisfied	7.4%	7.5%
Retired	12.1%	12.9%
Business Sold/Closed Down (Self-Employed)	1.1%	0.8%

 

 

The table below shows the average of the share of workers by their reason for job loss as reported between 2019–2020 and 2022–2023.

Table 4(B): Reason for Losing Job During the Previous Year

Reason	Average (2019/2020)	Average (2022/2023)
End of Seasonal Job (Employee)	12.4%	12.0%
End of Temporary/Casual (Employee)	13.5%	13.7%
Company Moved/Closed Down (Employee)	1.4%	1.1%
Business Conditions (Employees)	10.7%	15.4%
Dismissal/Other Reasons	3.7%	4.9%

 

As mentioned above, this includes additional reasons than had been collected previously. The additions are the last six on the list. “Other” became “dismissal or other”. It’s worth noting that “other” is a much lower share of overall reasons for leaving a job once the other categories are included. This supports the contention that much of what was included in “other” previously is now accounted for with these additional options.

As the table shows, there is very little difference in the share of people who have left a previous job for the various reasons. Personal/Family and Business Conditions increased slightly and Going to School decreased. There is nothing to suggest that in recent times, individuals are leaving jobs for reasons that are in any way different than why they were leaving jobs prior to the global pandemic.

 

Brace Yourself For The Great Resignation: A Note To The Leaders | (forbes.com), Forbes, 2021. Is the Great Resignation Over? Not Even Close | HRPA, Chetan Sehgal, HRPA, 2022.

The Great Resignation Didn’t Start with the Pandemic | (hbr.org) Joseph Fuller and William Kerr, Harvard Business Review, 2022.

“Great Resignations” Are Common During Fast Recoveries | San Francisco Fed (frbsf.org), Bart Hobijn, FRBSF Economic Letter, 2022.

The Great Resignation Is Turning Into the Great Regret. Employers Are Joining In Too | Inc.com, Jessica Stillman, Inc., 2022.

The “Great Resignation” in perspective : Monthly Labor Review: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics | (bls.gov), Maury Gittleman, Monthly Labor Review, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2022.

The Great Resignation never actually happened in Canada | Financial Post, Denise Paglinawan, Financial Post, 2023.

The Great Resignation or the Great Rethink? | (hbr.org), Ranjay Gulati, 2022.

After the Great Resignation, where did all the Canadian workers go? | CBC News, CBC, 2022. The Great Resignation & Canadian Workers | The Leveller, Grace McGrenere, The Leveller, 2022.