‘Cash in early’: Real reason Gen Z seem so ‘entitled’ at work
Gen Z have been stereotyped as being “entitled” and difficult in the workplace - but one expert has revealed the real reason young workers act the way they do.
When talking about Gen Z workers it is not uncommon to hear the word “entitled” thrown around, particularly by older generations.
Since entering the workforce, Gen Z have been given a bad wrap.
They have come in with firm work-life balance boundaries, have rejected “hustle culture” and want to ensure they are being properly compensated for their time.
This has led to the youngest working generation being branded with a whole range of unflattering descriptors and stereotyped as difficult in the workplace.
But, it turns out, there is a very good reason Gen Zers have adopted this outlook when it comes to work - and it has everything to do with how businesses now treat employees.
Author and business leadership expert, Simon Sinek, recently spoke at the Amsterdam Business Forum and addressed some of the perceptions surrounding the youngest working generation.
“When I was young in my career if you wanted a raise or a promotion the way you got it was work really, really hard, you accomplish something, you go to your boss and be like ‘Look what I did, I deserve a raise or a bonus’. And that was how things were done,” he said.
“Kids now will come to be and be like, ‘pay me more and you’ll see what I can do’.
“And I am like, ‘no. Shouldn’t you do something first?’. And we label that as entitlement because it sure sounds like it, right?”
However, instead of just dismissing this as entitled, Mr Sinek said it is important to question why young workers seem to have this mindset.
He pointed out a pattern that has emerged in workplaces over the past 20 to 40 years.
Over that period, we have seen the focus shift from long term goals to short-term goals and immediate profit, with Mr Sinek citing the focus on things like quarterly results.
Mass lay offs now ‘normal’
Businesses are now more focused on “disinterested external constituencies” over customers and employees.
We have seen a rise in mass lay-offs over the years, in many cases from already profitable companies just wanting to be even more profitable.
“So you get to lose your job,” the leadership expert said.
“That is now normal, we don’t even think that is shocking.”
For young people entering the workforce, Mr Sinek theorised that the majority of those people have experienced either one of their parents or one of their friend’s parents being laid off, “through no fault of their own”.
“So what they see is a transition where it used to be the company was loyal to you and you were loyal to the company,” he said.
“You worked a bunch of years, you got the proverbial gold watch. There is now an entire generation, when I talk about the gold watch, they have no idea what I am talking about.”
This refers to a tradition where gold watches would be given to long-serving employees either as a retirement gift or to mark a career milestone. It is something that has now mostly become a thing of the past.
Mr Sinek said Gen Z workers have “grown up in a world that demands loyalty but offers none”, which is why he believe younger people have adopted this seemingly entitled attitude to work.
The idea that you could work hard and be loyal to a company, only to be let go anyway, is causing young people to think they “may as well cash in early” and get their money upfront “because there are no guarantees”.
”And they are right. That is the correct response for the business world we live in today,” the author told the forum.
“If you don’t ask where that came from, what you will do is you will call them entitled, you will treat them as entitled, you will put all these barriers up and try and teach them your way, which is not appropriate for the times we live in.
“They are afraid of losing a job through no fault of their own.”
In order to change this attitude, Mr Sinek said it is up to companies and business leaders to make their employees feel safe and supported.
“Eventually the feeling will reverse,” he said.
‘Lazy’ claim disproved with WFH data
A recent report by employment website SEEK also further disproved the stereotype Gen Z are lazy and not willing to put in hard work.
The Money Matters report, which included responses from 4000 Australian workers, found an interesting generational divide when it comes to what would motivate people to forgo working from home.
Overall, 76 per cent of workers said they would return to the office full time in exchange for salary increase.
Digging into this figure further shows that Gen Z are leading the charge, with 86 per cent of respondents in this generation willing to head back to the office if it means more money.
Kylie Pascoe, APAC Senior Marketing Manager of SEEK’s Customer Insights & Research team, said the research flips the “lazy” stigma attached to Gen Z “on its head”.
Speaking to news.com.au, she said the youngest working generation are proving they are willing to work hard in order to unlock more money.
“In fact, they’re often leading the way when it comes to making trade-offs for higher pay,” she said.
“They’re more open than older generations to returning to the office full-time, taking on longer commutes, working extra hours, and taking on more responsibilities in exchange for a pay rise.”
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Of all the workers interviewed who can work remotely, almost one in four said they wouldn’t return to the office, even if more money was offered.
Surprisingly, the generation most likely to take this stance was Baby Boomers, with 55 per cent choosing this option, along with 31 per cent of Gen Xers.
Even as much as a 20 per cent pay increase still isn’t enough, with 80 per cent of Boomers saying they would prefer a good work-life balance over a significant pay bump.
