Everyone’s taken a shot at Gen Z over the last few years. They’ve been accused of laziness, short attention spans, narcissism (thanks, social media!), and now the “Gen Z stare.” It’s generational warfare and I want to send these guys some love from a generation that remembers dial-up internet ;).
Nine of my nieces and nephews and countless family members are Gen Z (with the exception of one who is Generation Alpha, but he won’t be able to read this article for a couple of years from now). I feel like this makes me somewhat of an expert on the matter. Let’s say I’m a gardener offering tips to a farmer. Not quite qualified, but I’ve been around for a few harvests.
Like the generation before them, the Millennials got much of the same treatment from the generations before them (no offense to the Baby Boomers and early Gen X crowd). While Millennials were accused of wanting to be the boss on day one of their internship because they provided feedback on processes that could be improved by technology, Gen Z have been accused of the opposite: a lack of motivation.
Some of the accusations are true: Gen Z do not believe in loyalty to a company just for the sake of keeping a “good’ job. They’ve even been accused of ghosting jobs, calling out sick at the drop of a hat, or ignoring low-wage job postings entirely.
You see, while employers are complaining about these behaviors, Gen Z is silently manifesting work environments that reflect a shifting society. One that values work/life balance over hustle culture, ease over stress, and vibes over conformity. They’re a key reason why there’s more salary transparency on job listings now, and why job-hopping no longer prevents you from advancing in your career.
Now if Gen Z manages to reverse the return-to-office mandates, they’d get more than just a participation trophy, they’d get awards, of the financial kind. Just kidding. I don’t have that kind of power.
I predict Gen Z will finally be vindicated, and soon. They’ll be able to take the credit for shifting the nature of the workforce from one that only benefits the employer to one that sees the value in each individual employee as a person to be invested in, not used.
So, let’s give these kids a break. After all, they may one day be responsible for our elder care. I’ll take them over the machines any day.
Gina N. Anderson 