Coworker talks about quitting frequently

[thenerdone]

I had the same problem with two coworkers who threaten to quit, and they have been saying that for a year. They are still working there.

[Retriever]

"Coworker talks about quitting frequently"

Really?
I would think that once somebody quits, he/she is gone from that job.
In light of that reality, how can a coworker "quit frequently"?

However, some coworkers might...frequently talk about quitting...

[AndyAMG]

My guess is he's trying to get "let go" or some sort of deal where his position is eliminated so he can draw unemployment.

If he quits he gets nothing. If he gets eliminated he may be able to collect unemployment or at least fight for it.

[michael917]

When I first started working, I had a co-worker who despised everything about the company and talked nasty about it all the time. He kept telling me I needed to get out and get a "real job." Some people just can't keep their opinions to themselves, and feel more comfortable threatening to do something drastic than actually attempting to do it.


Ironically, I grew to hate that company myself, but that was a decade later after massive changes were made.

[tassity22]

Originally Posted by HarryWarden

He either talks directly to me or, since I sit near him, I overhear him talking/threatening about wanting to do it. This morning, a coworker came to talk to him about a mistake or something he had made and his response was, "It doesn't matter because I'm leaving in a month."

I mean, I don't much like my job there either and have posted about it here but all the same, I don't go around telling coworkers that I want to quit or am leaving in the near future. I don't know what his end game is. Is he hoping they fire him, will he actually quit, or does he just want attention?

I agree, this is annoying. I once listened to a co-worker talk constantly about the new job she would be going to, that paid more. I finally mentioned it to a supervisor. I know I shouldn't have done that, but I was just tired of hearing it. I kept thinking, "if you can go someplace else so easily, why haven't you done it already?"

[CGab]

Just ignore it! Unless it affects you directly, who cares if he stays or goes??

[Serious Conversation]

Anyone who is being that open about it is either looking for attention or completely incompetent.

If you want to leave so badly, find something else. It isn't that hard. There is no need to make everyone else miserable routinely.

At one of my former employers, everyone was miserable and everyone knew everyone else was miserable. Whenever one of us had "a call," we would step out saying we had "discrete personal business" to attend to. It got to where everyone was covering for everyone else's "personal business." There was a lot of turnover, but no one was being dramatic or trying to call lots of attention to it.

[sas318]

Who knows his real reason. There are a hundred reasons for why someone says/does something.

Maybe he's just so frustrated all the time and threatening to quit is his way of stress relief, but once the feeling passes, he's fine again, until the next time he's fed up.

Or deep down, he knows it's hard to leave because there's no guarantee he'll find another job.