We’re sure most of you are already familiar with the concept, but we’ll start with a quick overview of what it means when we say “millennial”. A millennial (or Generation Y as it is also known) is someone born between 1980 and 1994 (give or take a year or two, depending on who you’re talking to). This tech-savvy generation is slowly, but surely starting to make up a large portion of the workforce. However, the so-called Baby Boomers (and to a lesser extent the Gen X’ers) tend to refer to this group as the “lazy generation”. Indeed it is often those very same Baby Boomers who are usually in a position to employ millennials and who observe these differences in their work ethic, the perception of a work/life balance and a seeming penchant for job hopping. But are millennials really lazy? The following discussion reveals positive and negative aspects of the millennial label.
Why do Baby Boomers think Millennials are lazy?
Millennials have grown up in the age of technological advancement. Through their mobile devices, they are in a process of constant connectivity. To them, a regular 9-5 engagement at work is often at odds with their own ideas of the work/life balance. While the Boomers might feel that it is “good” to be at your desk for eight hours daily, millennials don’t necessarily think so. When you can reply to emails while commuting to work or work remotely from a cafe, why do you need to stay glued to a desk and computer throughout the day? Actually, from a millennials perspective, this is not laziness, it is simply a smarter way to work.
However, some millennials still see their own generation as wasteful and self-absorbed. A survey conducted on millennial respondents by Pew Research Center showed that just 36 percent think they are hardworking and less than 25 percent see their generation as responsible. A major characteristic of millennials is that they believe they do well when they do good. That’s why nearly 70 percent believe that giving back to society and working for the good of their communities are their top priorities. This is even evident in the way millennials maintain their yard and promote a green culture in their neighbourhood.
A Deloitte millennial survey also showed that millennials live for their passion. The study revealed that close to half of the millennials all over the world have turned away from work that doesn’t agree with their personal beliefs. As such, they will shun work if that runs contrary to their values.
Do millennials love their work?
The claim that millennials don’t live to work but work to live seems to be more of a myth than a fact. Studies have shown that millennials actually want their work to be an integral part of their lives. Due to the love they have for their work, they often answer client calls late into the night. Some are prepared to work 100 hours a week to pursue their passion and build a new business online. In fact, with the global work environment, it is not uncommon to find a millennial staying up late in Europe to have a Skype chat with a client living in another time zone, like the U.S. or Japan.
While there are members of Gen Y, who will not spend an extra hour after closing time, some virtually spend their whole day working. This is particularly true of those involved in purely digital businesses, where they might finish their workday at 9 or 10 pm. Many will tell you that if you want to keep earning a consistent income as a freelancer, you have to keep pitching to new clients every day.
Are millennials reliable employees?
Those who are responsible for employing millennials have called them job-hoppers. Some even believe they are the worst type of employees. This is most likely true because a Deloitte survey showed that over 60 percent of millennials will like to switch employers by 2020. Job-hopping is, however, not a particular trait of Generation Y.
Over 30 years ago, young people did exactly the same thing. Job-hopping is a common characteristic of many young workers. Some employers have adapted to this behavior and they give millennials the flexibility and freedom to integrate their work with their social life. But some can’t understand why these young employees are not willing to sweat it out for many hours daily for decades in a single company.
The attitude that young people in any generation have towards their career is formed early after leaving school. If a graduate finds a good job early, and enjoys the role and feels appreciated, then he or she will usually stay in the company for many years. On the other hand, a graduate that had to do freelance work, go through a series of internships before finding permanent employment, tends to be less loyal. This type of worker develops a tough and casual disposition to the employer and will be ready to change jobs more frequently.
While some young workers hate to be labeled a millennial because of the laziness linked with the tag, some others are highly valued in their organizations. Young tech-savvy workers are in high demand as social media profile managers and they even teach top management staff in their companies to manage their linkedIn, Facebook and other social media profiles.
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