They’re calling it “The Great Resignation.”
Maybe you’ve not heard of it yet.
If you lead a church (or are part of a church staff), the information I am about to share is absolutely vital to the health and vibrancy of your church. It affects you and your family. And it will deeply impact not only the way your church will be staffed in the future, but what the constituency of your congregation will look like moving forward.
The "Great Resignation” has the potential to significantly change how we do ministry in the
coming months and years.
According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, about 4 million Americans quit their job in July of this year. And that number has remained increasingly high ever since.
In fact, there are more jobs available right now than ever before in America… 11 million according to the government.
In my small town in Ohio, it seems everyone is hiring. Nearly everyone has a ‘we’re hiring’ sign out front. Our local Burger King is hiring people ‘on the spot’. Just walk in, and they’ll give you a badge and a spot in front of the flame broiler.
COVID has caused some people to leave the workforce, and it has caused others to reconsider their career paths.
And these aren’t just low-paying, non-skilled labor jobs that are in transition. Teachers, doctors, nurses, technology workers, first-responders, and yes… church staff are reconsidering their future roles and careers trajectory.
A recent study by Microsoft shows that 41% of the global workforce is considering leaving their current employer within the next year. And that’s the good news, and here’s the bad: 46% are considering making a major pivot or career transition when they finally do pull the trigger.
Gallup’s findings are even more startling: 48% of America’s working population is actively job searching or watching for new opportunities.
Is this “Great Resignation” affecting the church?
Absolutely.
We started seeing this in the Spring of this year, and our best guess is that we’re still early in this trend. The church is NOT immune from The Great Resignation. In fact, in many ways, it is very representative of what other employment sectors are experiencing.
In our work at Chemistry Staffing, we enjoy a unique perspective that few have. We’re currently working with about 50 churches to help them find staff during this challenging time. And, probably even more insightful, we talk with hundreds of church staff candidates every week. We’re starting to see some trends and patterns emerge...some are positive, but many are concerning. Regardless, we are just now starting to see how the last 19 months may affect the next 19 months and beyond. It’s important that we all take notice.
Over the next few weeks here in Monday Morning Insight, we’re going to be looking at specific ways we are experiencing what we think is a never-before-seen shake-up in the way we will staff our churches in the future.
But for today, I’d like you to invest nine minutes in this video from PBS. It does a great job of explaining a little more about “The Great Resignation.” As I watched, I was amazed at the correlation between what I hear in this video and what we see in the church and with many of the candidates we’re talking with right now.
Watch it now… it’s well worth your time and will set the groundwork for what I’ll be sharing here in the next few weeks:
I can’t emphasize this enough: This will affect your church soon if it hasn’t already.
In fact, you may be part of the 41% or 48% referenced above that are thinking about changing jobs or even totally pivoting out of ministry.
I’d love to hear your story. Email me at todd.rhoades@chemistrystaffing.com to tell me what you’re experiencing. (All emails are confidential). Maybe “The Great Resignation” is affecting your church, and I’d love to hear how.
Or maybe you’re considering a move to another church role or a total pivot out of ministry altogether. Tell me your story.
Next Monday morning, we will unpack a little more about how this will change church staffing as we know it.
PS - We’d love to share with your church a little of what we’re seeing BEFORE you start to hire your next staff person. Find a time to talk.