55% of Australian’s Workers are Struggling in Silence
A manager once shared something with me that has stayed with me for years.
They described a team member who appeared completely fine. They were positive in meetings, delivering great work and seemed engaged in team conversations.
Then one day they disappeared.
They simply reached a point where they could no longer keep carrying things alone. The manager's response was pretty typical: "I had no idea."
Recent Australian research by wellbeing researcher Dr Michelle McQuaid found that 55 per cent of Australians say they are experiencing quiet cracking, what’s most concerning is that it’s a hidden risk that many people miss.
What Is Quiet Cracking?
Quiet cracking describes a situation where people appear capable and productive while struggling internally. “Quiet cracking is a state where people are externally high functioning but internally struggling,” says Dr McQuaid. “This came up over and over again in their comments: ‘I’m keeping it all together at work, but I’m going home and I’m falling apart.’”
They're continuing to function, but the effort required to keep everything together is becoming increasingly more difficult. It’s not like the usual visible wellbeing challenges. Quiet cracking often goes unnoticed because work performance remains relatively strong. My mentor, Dr John Hinwood coined it “the working wounded”. People continue delivering results, attending meetings and work commitments. From the outside, everything can appear normal. Yet many describe feeling overwhelmed, emotionally drained or stretched by pressures that are just invisible to everyone around them.
The challenge for leaders is that the signs aren't always obvious until someone reaches a tipping point.
Why Are So Many Australians Experiencing Quiet Cracking?
What’s interesting is that the research suggests many of the pressures contributing to quiet cracking are occurring outside of work. Finance and social challenges are typically affecting how people experience work and life. According to Dr McQuaid's research, cost-of-living pressures are the most commonly cited contributor.
Other contributing factors include:
Job insecurity
Climate anxiety
Political and social division
Ongoing uncertainty about the future
So if you relate to these, you’re not alone. Over half of the Australian workforce feels this way. Many people are managing multiple concerns at same time, while remaining constantly connected to news and events happening around the world. Unlike generations before us, there's not many opportunities to completely switch off.
How Is Quiet Cracking Different from Burnout?
Burnout and quiet cracking are related, but they're not the same thing. Quiet cracking often appears before burnout and can be much harder to recognise. People experiencing burnout frequently show visible signs of exhaustion, reduced capacity and declining performance.
Quiet cracking is a little bit different.
Most people continue performing at a high level even though they are carrying a strain. The research found that people who reported experiencing quiet cracking were still operating at approximately 93 per cent of their normal performance levels. That’s incredible! This is why it sometimes bothers me that workplaces want to encourage resilience training; they’re encouraging people to continue the quiet cracking.
Leaders often assume that if performance is strong, wellbeing must be doing okay. The research suggests that, this assumption may not always be correct.
Why Should HR Professionals Be Paying Attention?
Quiet cracking may not immediately affect performance, but it can create significant long-term risks for both individuals and organisations. One of the most significant findings from the research was the connection between quiet cracking and burnout.
People experiencing quiet cracking were more than six times as likely to experience clinical burnout.
This highlights the importance of identifying things earlier, rather than waiting until somebody reaches a crisis point. Unfortunately, most people ignore things until it can’t be ignored any more. Like many businesses don’t address risks until someone has an accident (or something more serious).
By the time burnout becomes visible, the underlying pressures may have already been there for months.
What Are the Warning Signs of Quiet Cracking?
The signs are usually behaviour rather than performance related.
Leaders may notice:
Withdrawal from social interactions
Changes in communication style
Reduced enthusiasm
Emotional flatness
Less participation in discussions
A noticeable drop in connection with colleagues
None of these signs automatically indicate someone is struggling. However, when they appear consistently, it might be an opportunity for a conversations and extending some support.
Why Is Psychological Safety So Important?
People are more likely to speak honestly about challenges when they believe they won't be judged, dismissed or disadvantaged for doing so. However, too often people see this as a professional weakness, a failing in their competency. Many of the people experiencing quiet cracking are working hard to maintain the appearance that they have everything under control. Often, they don't want to worry others.
Sometimes, others may feel uncomfortable discussing personal pressures. This is why psychological safety is so important. When people feel safe enough to be genuine, organisations are far more likely to identify concerns before they escalate. This doesn’t mean leaders to have all the answers or have smart things to say. In fact, it’s quite the opposite. Sometimes it simply requires them to demonstrate they are good listeners and to do it well.
What Can HR Professionals Do Right Now?
Supporting people experiencing quiet cracking starts with looking beyond output and creating space for genuine human connection. Some practical actions include:
Training leaders to recognise behavioural changes
Encouraging frameworks for regular wellbeing conversations
Building trust across teams
Creating opportunities for meaningful connection
Looking beyond performance indicators when assessing wellbeing
The goal is to create workplaces where people feel comfortable speaking openly when they need support.
Is Performance Still a Reliable Measure of Wellbeing?
Performance provides useful information about work outcomes, but it doesn't necessarily reveal how someone is coping. One of the strongest messages from this research is that people can continue producing excellent work while finding life increasingly difficult. For HR professionals, that's important to recognise.
Strong performance tells us what someone is achieving. It doesn't always tell us what it is costing them to achieve it.
TL:DR – FAQ’s
How common is quiet cracking in Australia?
Research conducted by Dr Michelle McQuaid found that 55 per cent of Australians reported experiencing quiet cracking.
What causes quiet cracking?
The most commonly reported causes include cost-of-living pressures, job insecurity, climate anxiety and increasing social and political division.
Is quiet cracking the same as quiet quitting?
No. Quiet quitting relates to workplace engagement and optional effort. Quiet cracking refers to someone who is struggling internally while continuing to perform.
Can someone perform well while experiencing quiet cracking?
Yes. Research found that many people experiencing quiet cracking maintained around 93 per cent of their normal performance levels.
Does quiet cracking lead to burnout?
Not always, but the research found that people experiencing quiet cracking were more than six times more likely to experience clinical burnout.
What should leaders focus on?
Leaders should pay attention to behavioural changes, strengthen psychological safety and create opportunities for genuine conversations that go beyond workload and performance.
Source: 55% of Australian workers are ‘quietly cracking’, finds research, Phoebe Armstrong, AHRI
What's Next?
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