New data shows Gen Z has a VERY different view of work and employers are going to have to get used to it

A shock new survey has revealed just how vastly different Gen Z workers’ view of their careers is to how most of their parents and grandparents saw theirs.

Gen Z’s different attitude to work compared to Generation X and Baby Boomers has long been noted, given that the oldest of them are now aged 28.

Even the very youngest of the generation – born between 1997 and 2012- are set to turn 13 this year and some of them will soon have part-time after school and weekend jobs.

The generational differences made headlines last week when a Gen Z Aussie who quit her $1,800-a-week sales job because it wasn’t ‘worth it’ was slammed as ‘entitled’.

But the new data from talent agency Randstad Australia shows this is far from an isolated case, with around 42 per cent of Gen Z workers declaring they’d rather be unemployed than stay in an unhappy job.

Just over half, 51 per cent, would quit if work stopped them from enjoying life, 62 per cent would walk if they didn’t feel they belonged and 45 per cent wouldn’t accept a job in the first place if the company didn’t ‘foster a positive workplace culture’.

Jo Jakobs, director of professional talent at Randstad Australia said she was not surprised at the study findings and that employers need to ‘understand the psychology and behavior’ of Gen Z.

‘When we look at some of the patterns of the way that Gen Z think and behave, we’ve had indications (of this) for a few years,’ she told Daily Mail Australia.

Whether it’s a fear of the unknown, the need for stability, or financial commitments – there are plenty of reasons people stay in jobs they don’t love. 

But even with job security concerns, many Gen Z workers won’t hesitate to leave if their job no longer brings them happiness. 

Randstad’s research found they are pushing back against ‘sticking it out’, with 44 per cent actively job-hunting even while in employment. 

And early half of them, 49 per cent, would quit without having another job lined up.

‘We are starting to unpack generational differences,’ Ms Jakobs said. 

‘As a demographic or a cohort, (Gen Z) do have different expectations around work, so (those figures) don’t surprise me

The Randstad survey also found that work-life balance, at 83 per cent, now ranks higher than salary, at 79 per cent in employee priorities.

That is a drop though, as just a year ago 93 per cent of Gen Z said work-life balance was the most important factor in deciding where they would work. 

Ms Jakobs said change is because their expectations have ‘probably been tempered by the reality of the economy that people have lived through for the last 12 months (such as) cost of living pressures.

‘There’s a bit of a tempering there in terms of the reality of life, but it’s still a really high figure (favouring work-life balance over salary).

‘It still tells us that in spite of some of these pressures that are coming to bear from economic conditions, that people still very much value that idea of a more holistic life balance.’

Some of the willingness to quit a job can be explained by the fact that, on average, people will generally change jobs every two to three years.

‘So, it doesn’t surprise me again that we’ve got a figure like 51 per cent of people saying, ‘I’m going to think about changing jobs’,’ Ms Jakobs said. 

‘Because actually, the trends would indicate that that’s going to happen anyway. But what I have observed in my career is that Gen Z absolutely will be more ready to change jobs than, say, a typical Gen X or even a millennial. 

‘And that is driven a lot by their mindset that is probably more generationally driven than a general view.’

Ms Jakobs said Randstad’s research has found that, post-Covid, people across all generations ‘have had a bit of a reset around what’s important in life, depending on  their finances, because that is the reality. We need money to, to live.’

She said that if someone is in a position where they can afford to can take a risk to leave a well paid job, ‘then maybe they will look to find work that suits more their sense of purpose or their sense of their value set. 

‘That is especially emphasised across Gen Z – they are just as just as likely to make a decision about their work based on their values and their mindset as they will about salary.’

Given that most of the baby boomer generation has already retired and the oldest Gen Xers are starting to retire, Ms Jakobs said employers are going to have to learn to deal with Gen Z.

‘This is the way that this generation is and organisations have to actually stop worrying about whether (they are) resilient, are they adaptable.

‘They actually just need to dig in and understand the psychology and behaviour of the generation, and then think about how do I translate that into my organisation.

‘So, how do I engage with that talent, with that generation? How do I keep them interested?’

She added that employers have to ask themselves if they understand Gen Z well enough to know what their ’employee value proposition’ should be for them.

‘By the time we get to 2030, Gen Zs will be the largest cohort in organisations … (there is a) fairly short runway as an organisation to get your head around it.’

But for all their differences, Ms Jakobs said there are also ‘definitely some consistencies of behaviour and mindset across the generations’.

‘Gen Z is telling us that values and culture and the societal impact of the organisation on the broader world is important to them, (but) they also still need to be able to pay their bills.’