Baby Boomers Often Did 7 Things At Work That Would Get Younger Generations Fired Now
Antoni Shkraba | Pexels Boomers love to make fun of Gen Z for their supposed lack of work ethic.
But the truth is, the way boomers acted at work simply wouldn't fly today. Things have changed since boomers entered the workforce, and some of their behaviors would get young people immediately fired now.
Things boomers used to do at work that would get young people fired today
1. Giving uninvited physical contact
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Back in the day, men, in particular, thought it was normal to touch female colleagues. These gestures may have been harmless or had good intentions, like a hug or casually touching their arm, but today, it's harassment.
Nowadays, physical contact involves things like a fist-bump or handshake, but anything more than that can make people uncomfortable. While boomers got away with it early on, young people would be let go right away.
2. Making inappropriate jokes
Workplace humor has changed over time. Boomers often made comments at the expense of their co-workers, whether it was about their gender and race, or even age-related "jokes."
For older people, it was common for colleagues to make fun of each other, and they didn't really consider people's feelings. But today, even talking about someone's appearance is frowned upon, and can turn the office into a hostile working environment.
3. Treating admin like personal assistants
Older office culture tended to treat assistants or secretaries like they were unimportant. Workers made them run errands like picking up dry cleaning or making coffee runs. They were expendable.
But for young people, if they did the same thing, they would be fired. People in administrative positions draw firm lines around their duties, and are abundantly clear on what they expect professionally.
4. Not taking proper security measures
Times used to be simpler, way before technology changed everything. When boomers became employed, there were stacks of books and papers everywhere. Phone numbers were kept on Rolodexes. Company or customer files were tucked away in unlocked drawers.
This really wouldn't go well today. Leaving physical data in an unsecure spot is grounds to be fired, even if that data doesn't get stolen. Young workers adhere to certain security protocols, and if they don't, they can be fired for certain violations, like anything related to HIPAA.
5. Demanding unpaid overtime
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Gen Z cares a lot about work-life balance. While boomers may find this absurd, Gen Z believes this is the way it should have been all along.
If a boss makes their employees stay overtime and not get paid, or expects them to work crazy hours, they will easily get complaints. But boomers were made to believe that they should just get the job done and not complain, even if that meant sacrificing their personal time.
In fact, some Gen Zers are refusing to work with boomers due to their unfair workplace treatments.
6. Saving files on local computers
Boomers were in the workforce when technology like this wasn't so readily available. But once it was introduced, it was acceptable to just save documents or files locally on a computer.
Now, everything has to be saved to a drive or the iCloud. Granted, this wasn't boomers' fault, it was just the way technology was at the time. But today, if young workers failed to save properly, it could lead to consequences.
7. Acting aggressively
"Tough love" isn't the workplace culture norm anymore. It's actually the opposite. Because boomers were raised in a time when they were told to just push through and stay tough, they tended to be aggressive in the workplace. They also adhered to hierarchies and expectations of authority.
But if young people are caught yelling or acting intimidating to get employees to do more work, that's harassment. Not only do Gen Zers, in particular, know it's wrong, they also won't put up with outdated norms like this anymore.
Sophie Bagheri is a writer with a bachelor's degree in English and theatre who covers lifestyle topics.
