Google reveals that many South Africans were looking to quit their jobs amid the Covid-19 pandemic

South Africa is one of the top five countries where people are searching ’how to leave your job’, according to Google. Photo: AP Photo/Don Ryan, File

South Africa is one of the top five countries where people are searching ’how to leave your job’, according to Google. Photo: AP Photo/Don Ryan, File

Published Feb 13, 2022

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South Africa is one of the top five countries where people are searching “how to leave your job”, according to Google.

The other four countries are the Philippines at the top, the US, Australia and the UK.

Lots of people quit jobs in 2021 owing to the pandemic and Google Search has revealed that over the past year, people were most interested in jobs that involve helping others, travel and working in real estate -- ideally in a role that doesn’t require a traditional boss.

The “Great Resignation” of 2021 is usually talked about as an American phenomenon, but Search trends suggest that people everywhere were looking to leave their jobs.

“Month after month, a record number of people put their tools away, shut their laptops, took off their badges, handed in their two week’s notice or simply walked out the door and didn’t go back,” said Jennifer Kutz, Search trends expert.

Top-10 most searched “how to become” jobs from January 2021-January 2022 were real estate agent, flight attendant, notary, therapist, pilot, firefighter, personal trainer, psychiatrist, physical therapist and electrician.

In India, millions of people lost jobs across sectors during the pandemic.

The National Restaurant Association of India (NRAI) revealed in October that 32 percent of the staff employed by the organised sector of the industry have lost their jobs.

The “Great Resignation” is an idea proposed by Professor Anthony Klotz of Texas A&M University that predicts a large number of people leaving their jobs after the Covid-19 pandemic ends and life returns to “normal”.

Managers are now navigating the ripple effects from the pandemic, as employees re-evaluate their careers and leave their jobs in record numbers.

IANS