More U.S. workers are quitting their jobs than at any time in at least two decades, signaling optimism among many professionals while also adding to the struggle companies face trying to keep up with the economic recovery…
The wave of resignations marks a sharp turn from the darkest days of the pandemic, when workers craved job security while weathering a national health and economic crisis. In April, the share of U.S. workers leaving jobs was 2.7%, according to the Labor Department, a jump from 1.6% a year earlier to the highest level since at least 2000.
The shift by workers into new jobs and careers is prompting employers to raise wages and offer promotions to keep hold of talent. The appetite for change by employees indicates many professionals are feeling confident about jumping ship for better prospects, despite elevated unemployment rates.
Several factors are driving the job turnover. Many people are spurning a return to business as usual, preferring the flexibility of remote work or reluctant to be in an office before the virus is vanquished. Others are burned out from extra pandemic workloads and stress, while some are looking for higher pay to make up for a spouse’s job loss or used the past year to reconsider their career path and shift gears.
Altogether, human-resource executives and labor experts see a wave of resignations. In a March survey of 2,000 workers by Prudential Financial Inc., one-quarter said they plan to soon look for a role with a different employer.
Been there, done that. That individual act ain’t exactly what’s happening, though. Not when this is described as a wave. Folks have known for a long time how to go about quitting a job, getting something better. Do they just feel better able to do it, right now, having made it past the pandemic?
Eideard 
“As offices shut down for Covid, workers bought vans and hit the road — and some don’t want to return” https://www.cnbc.com/2021/06/20/van-life-tech-workers-worked-from-road-during-covid-may-not-return.html
Retail workers are quitting at record rates for higher-paying work: ‘My life isn’t worth a dead-end job’. https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/business/nation/story/2021-06-21/retail-workers-are-quitting-at-record-rates-for-higher-paying-work-my-life-isnt-worth-a-dead-end-job
Some 649,000 employees gave notice in April, the sector’s largest one-month exodus in over 20 years, a reflection of pandemic-era strains and a strengthening job market
…“We’re seeing a wider understanding that these were never good jobs and they were never livable jobs,” said Rebecca Givan, a professor of labor studies and employment relations at Rutgers University. “In many cases, the pay is below a living wage and the hours are inconsistent and insufficient. If anything, the pandemic has made retail jobs even less sustainable than they already were.”
As The Pandemic Recedes, Millions Of Workers Are Saying ‘I Quit’ (NPR 6/24/21) https://www.npr.org/2021/06/24/1007914455/as-the-pandemic-recedes-millions-of-workers-are-saying-i-quit
“As pandemic life recedes in the U.S., people are leaving their jobs in search of more money, more flexibility and more happiness. Many are rethinking what work means to them, how they are valued, and how they spend their time. It’s leading to a dramatic increase in resignations — a record 4 million people quit their jobs in April alone, according to the Labor Department.
The great migration to remote work in the pandemic has also had a profound impact on how people think about when and where they want to work. [ https://www.npr.org/2021/06/07/1002141237/working-in-sweatpants-may-be-over-as-companies-contemplate-the-great-office-retu ]
“We have changed. Work has changed. The way we think about time and space has changed,” says Tsedal Neeley, a professor at Harvard Business School and author of the book Remote Work Revolution: Succeeding From Anywhere. Workers now crave the flexibility given to them in the pandemic — which had previously been unattainable, she says.”