Gen Z Is 82% More Likely To Have This Bad Habit At Work Than Gen X, According To Data
Girts Ragelis | Shutterstock Gen Z is often the target of work stereotypes, and most of them are unfounded. But not all of them. Case in point: According to an exclusive study of 1,000 employees by Sign.com, the younger cohort has a bad habit of ignoring emails compared to their more seasoned co-workers.
Communication isn't exactly Gen Z's strong suit, and they know it. In a Harris Poll commissioned by Fortune, 65% admitted they struggle to talk with the people they work with. Apparently, that extends to digital communications as well.
Gen Z is 82% more likely to ignore emails at work than Gen X.
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Researchers found that 82% of Gen Z are more likely than Gen X to avoid emails that require action. On top of that, 3 in 5 Gen Z adults are "ghosting" documents by opening them but never signing or editing them. But the real kicker is, none of it seems intentional.
According to the data, 46% of Gen Zers polled said they thought they had signed a work document, only to realize later they hadn't. And if that's got you scratching your head, 40% said they intentionally avoid anything in their email that they think could involve taking action, like signing or logging in.
Research has previously uncovered that Gen Z becomes stressed when faced with work emails.
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A majority of people say the volume of work emails they get each day is stressful, according to a survey of 2,000 U.S. office workers from Babbel, via CNBC Make It. And that makes sense. Any work communication is stressful. But Gen Z workers are actually more likely to let those messages pile up because the stress seems to hit them harder.
More than a third, 36%, of Gen Z workers confessed to having over 1,000 unread emails in their inbox, compared with 18% of office workers overall. They are also more likely than older workers to say they’ve sent an email they regret.
"From our findings, Gen Z appears to struggle the most with email stress and stacking up a huge quantity of unread emails due to a combination of factors," explained Esteban Touma, a linguistics and culture expert at Babbel. "Gen Z’s communication preferences are heavily influenced by the prevalence of instant messaging platforms and social media."
Gen Z often has a hard time adapting in the workplace.
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Work and stress go hand in hand, but for younger workers, simply navigating the weight of communication, whether in person or digital, causes a freeze response. The immediacy with which they're being expected to respond could be the culprit. Rather than setting boundaries with their managers, they're becoming overwhelmed and not responding at all.
Another factor to consider: the formality of emails. For a generation dubbed "digital natives," email feels like a dinosaur of technology rather than an effective workplace tool. As the Intern Group noted, adaptability when it comes to older technology isn't on their radar, and these 20-somethings struggle when workplaces don't have up-to-date technical tools to work with.
Gen Z already feels out of place amongst their older peers. Within a year on the job, nearly half of Generation Z office workers reported feeling that veteran employees were critical due to stereotypes associated with their generation, according to a report from Kahoot.
The best thing Gen Z adults can do is find a balance between staying on top of their responsibilities and setting boundaries so they don't burn out from communication stress. Productivity might not have anything to do with how many emails you're answering, but it's still important that you're doing it.
Putting urgent emails on the back burner will reflect negatively on your ability to grow and eventually receive a promotion or raise at work.
Nia Tipton is a staff writer with a bachelor's degree in creative writing and journalism who covers news and lifestyle topics that focus on psychology, relationships, and the human experience.
