Is 'rage applying' the new 'quiet quitting'?

'Rage applying" consists in applying to several job offers following an episode of professional disappointment. A phenomenon that refers to a common sentiment among employees in the working world: the feeling that one deserves a better salary and better conditions. We take a closer look.

The grass is always greener somewhere else. This adage fits perfectly with the mood of TikTok advocates of "rage applying." This phenomenon consists in applying massively to job offers after something at work causes one serious disappointment, often either due to a lack of increase in salary or poor working conditions. The concept has gone viral over on TikTok. The associated hashtag has even attained more than 2.8 million views.

"I got mad at work and I rage applied to 15 jobs. And then I got a job that gave me a $25,000 raise. And it's a great place to work. So keep rage applying. It'll happen," explains TikTok user Redweez in a video on the platform that has over2.3 million views.

Content related to "rage applying" has taken off across social media platforms, and in particular on the Chinese network, in the early weeks of 2023. Yet this term is far from being new. Videos dating back to 2022 were already addressing this topic. "Applying for a new job because you're frustrated with your pay, manager, your coworkers... are age-old reasons why employees have always looked to move on," Amy Zimmerman, chief people officer at Relay Payment, told CNBC.

Some users on social networks are associating this phenomenon with "quiet quitting." But not everyone shares that view of the term: "Quiet quitting: I'm doing what you pay me for. Rage applying: I'll do more for someone who pays me more," commented a TikTok user on a video about this concept.

For internet users, the terms "rage" and "quitting" carry a negative connotation, which can be interpreted as not holding employers responsible for a toxic atmosphere found within a company or for bad management. By reappropriating these terms, users wish to demonstrate the benefits of applying for other positions, without accepting poor working conditions and a lack of advancement: "This was how I 'quiet quit lol. I love the term 'rage applying.' And now I'm in a significantly better job with a MUCH healthier environment," commented one user on TikTok.