Navio Kwok, PhD, is a leadership adviser, specializing in organizational psychology, at leadership advisory firm Russell Reynolds Associates.
Canada’s economy and many businesses are hurting amid a trade war with the United States. And, according to a recent survey by the Bank of Canada, business and financial leaders believe there is about a 35 per cent chance Canada is either already in or will enter a technical recession in the next six months.
When the broader economy weakens, businesses pull back on spending while people naturally start to question whether their jobs are safe and feel more on edge as uncertainty creeps in. These sentiments of job insecurity wear people down – they become more strained, less connected to their workplace and more tempted to leave when the market recovers.

