Gen Z Deserves Respect For The Reason Corporate America ‘Hates’ Them
Stock 4you | Shutterstock Gen Z is already having a hard enough time getting a foot in the door in the workforce. As a cohort, they have an 8.3% unemployment rate, which is double the national average of 4.2%.
Even being armed with college degrees and real-world career experience, they're constantly battling increased competition, hiring freezes, and wages struggling to keep up with inflated living costs. However, according to one recruiter, employers also have some negative perceptions about Gen Z, and it has nothing to do with their work ethic.
Corporate America 'hates' Gen Z because they're harder to manipulate than other generations.
Emily Durham, a recruiter who shares advice on social media about careers and job hunting, said she knows exactly why Corporate America tends to give Gen Z a hard time. She explained in a recent video, "The only reason these companies hate Gen Z at work is because Gen Z is harder to manipulate."
"It's not because they're lazy, it's not because they don't want to work," she continued. "They work just as hard; you're just mad you can't manipulate them." As a millennial herself, Durham sees how other generations often bend over backward and are willing to sacrifice much of their life for work, but Gen Z doesn't share the same mindset.
They're far less likely to just roll over and accept what employers tell them. Even though Gen Z has been told that hard work always leads to promotions and long-term job security, they know this isn't the reality. They're not afraid to question authority, discuss pay with others, and even leave a job where they don't feel valued. Taking what an employer says at face value isn't the norm anymore, and Gen Z refuses to give out their loyalty so easily.
Social media is keeping employers accountable in the modern day.
Workers have access to a wealth of information and experiences at their fingertips, and Gen Z knows how to use it better than anyone else. Through posting, viewing, and sharing, social media is creating a space for transparency with topics that have never really been discussed openly.
Employees have the freedom to compare everything from their salaries to the interview process to workplace expectations. From there, workers can identify patterns across organizations and realize where they have been taken advantage of or treated unfairly.
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As a result, employers typically find themselves under more pressure to align their actions with their public image. If a company promotes itself as being focused on the well-being of its employees, but workers are constantly reporting being overworked or having poor leadership, those contradictions are highly visible online.
Public criticism can affect employee recruiting and retention, and even customer perception. Social media doesn't always tell the full story, but it still creates a level of accountability that is hard to ignore.
Gen Z knows their worth, and this generation is prioritizing other things than getting a steady job and settling in for the rest of their lives. They often get labeled as lazy because they don't want their entire lives to revolve around work, but this is far from the truth.
This generation is just as hungry and ready to show what they can contribute in the workforce; they just need to be given a fair chance.
Kayla Asbach is a writer with a bachelor's degree from the University of Central Florida. She covers relationships, psychology, self-help, pop culture, and human interest topics.
