静かな退職

• Reading: しずかなたいしょく
• Romaji: shizuka na taishoku
• Kanji breakdown: 静 (quiet) + か (adjective ending) + な (connective) + 退 (withdraw) + 職 (job) → quiet withdrawal from work engagement
• Pronunciation: /ɕi.zɯ.ka na ta.i.ɕo.ku/

Meaning

Quiet quitting — doing only the bare minimum required at work without going above and beyond.

静かな退職 is the Japanese translation of the English term 'quiet quitting' that went viral globally in 2022. In Japan, where going above and beyond is deeply embedded in work culture, the concept struck a particular chord. Workers practicing 静かな退職 don't actually resign — they simply stop volunteering for extra tasks, refuse unpaid overtime, and strictly adhere to their job description. While some see it as a healthy boundary, others view it as a passive-aggressive form of resistance.

Examples

1. 最近「静かな退職」って言葉流行ってるけど、前からやってる人いたよね。 The term 'quiet quitting' has been trending lately, but there have always been people doing it.
2. 静かな退職してるって自覚はないけど、やる気がないのは事実。 I'm not consciously quiet quitting, but it's true that I have no motivation.
3. 静かな退職が増えてるのは会社側にも問題があるんじゃない？ Isn't the rise in quiet quitting a sign that companies themselves have problems too?

Usage Guide

Context: workplace, social media, news, career discussions

Tone: analytical, sometimes defensive

Do Say

• 静かな退職って悪いことなの？契約通りに働いてるだけじゃん。 (Is quiet quitting really bad? You're just working according to your contract.)
• 静かな退職が話題になるってことは、今まで求められすぎてたんだよ。 (The fact that quiet quitting is a topic means too much was expected before.)

Don't Say

• 頑張ってる同僚に「静かな退職すれば？」は士気を下げる (Telling a hardworking colleague to 'just quiet quit' undermines team morale)

Common Mistakes

• Confusing 静かな退職 with actually quitting — the person is still employed, just not going above and beyond

Origin & History

Translation of the English 'quiet quitting' that went viral on TikTok and social media globally in 2022. The Japanese term 静かな退職 (shizuka na taishoku) was adopted through media coverage of the international trend.

Cultural Context

Era: 2022, imported from English-language social media

Generation: Millennials and Gen Z

Social background: Office workers across industries

Regional notes: Used across all of Japan. Resonated strongly in a culture where exceeding job requirements was traditionally expected.