Millions of people across America are leaving their jobs in what’s called The Big Quit. What’s next for those people?
The signs say ‘Most Beautiful Small Town in America’. Joshua Hoff certainly isn’t arguing that about little Bardstown, Kentucky.
“We just fell in love with the town, fell in love with the culture they try to keep here,” said Hoff. “We are very rich in history.”
Hoff was a forklift operator for a major manufacturer.
“I was making good money,” he said. “People called me crazy for leaving that job. I knew there was more in life than working for someone else and making someone else money.”
Hoff came up with a plan. He’d drive people anywhere in Bardstown for just $5.
“My business is Bourbon City Taxi,” he said. “Every day, I get up. I have people who are happy to see me. I’m happy to see them. My attitude stays positive, so my business has flourished because of that.”
“It’s something we’ve never seen,” said Cara Partinger with Personnel Placements in Bowling Green, Kentucky. “It’s definitely evolving and changing.”
Partinger knows very well the rate at which people are quitting jobs to find a better fit, or like in Hoff’s case, just work for themselves.
“Post-pandemic, it’s been child care issues, a more flexible schedule and a higher wage,” said Partinger. “A lot of people got an opportunity to be at home. They saw they could live off one salary if it’s a double-income home. A lot of mothers and fathers have chosen to stay at home with children.”
Kentucky leads the country on the quit rate.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics reports 4.5% of working Kentuckians quit their jobs in August. Looking at the entire United States, 4.3 million people quit their jobs that month. The three states with the highest quit rates: Kentucky, Idaho, and Georgia. They are also states that don’t go higher than the federal minimum wage of $7.25.
Partinger said the employers she’s working with are willing and ready to adapt.
“You’re gonna have to listen to your workers more,” she said. “Now more than ever you do because there’s such a great need for people in the workforce right now.”
