From the Great Resignation to Lying Flat, Workers Are Opting Out

Around the world, millions of people are rethinking how they work and live—and how to better balance the two.

The Great Resignation has U.S. workers quitting their jobs in record numbers—more than 24 million did so from April to September this year—and many are staying out of the labor force. Germany, Japan, and other wealthy nations are seeing shades of the same trend.

The pandemic has taken a toll, with surveys showing an increase in feelings of burnout and a deterioration in mental health in many nations.

But the pressure has been building in developed countries for decades. Incomes ...