Gen Z is choosing to "work to live'' rather than "live to work," like previous generations, because they're reaping fewer rewards for their hard work, an expert on the future of work told Business Insider.
Ravin Jesuthasan, the global leader for transformation services at the consulting giant Mercer and a future-of-work expert, spoke with BI at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, this week and touched on the topic of Gen Z in the workplace.
Gen Z "has some very different attitudes to work" from older generations, Jesuthasan said, because it's one of the first generations whose members won't have wealth greater than that of their parents or grandparents. Additionally, they have already experienced huge disruptions, such as the COVID-19 pandemic.
Jesuthasan said: "I think they have more of an attitude of work to live as opposed to live to work that many of us grew up with. This is particularly true in the West. They have seen the legacy of all these broken promises. In the old days and in many parts of the West, they would promise you if you worked for 30 years, you have this defined benefit pension, you have retiree medical care, etc. None of that exists today.
"And so they've seen that get taken away from their parents or grandparents, and now there's a sense of, 'I'm only as good as the skills I have. I'm only as good as the value I'm delivering today, and so these are the terms under which I want to work, and you either meet them or not.'"
Gen Zers watched as millennials struggled through economic hardships, including multiple recessions and a pandemic, which put a dent in their income and dreams of homeownership. The increased cost of living, skyrocketing house prices, and student debt have locked millennials out of the housing market and made it difficult for them to accumulate wealth.
As a result, numerous Gen Zers are "quiet quitting" and taking a step back at work because they're painfully aware that their hard work could essentially amount to nothing.
"Many of us built, whether it's bought homes or whatever, based on this promise of stability," Jesuthasan said. "There was this expectation that the tail was bigger. And we took on liabilities and obligations early on because of that tail. I think this generation has seen that tail dissipate."
Companies will have to start meeting people on their individual terms rather than taking a one-size-fits-all approach, Jesuthasan said. This includes being able to "pick and choose" from a "portfolio of rewards," he added.
Gen Zers have often received flak for their perceived flippant attitude to work. In one survey last year, 74% of managers said the generation was the most challenging to work with.
Meanwhile, celebrities including Whoopi Goldberg have dismissed their economic struggles. She said they couldn't afford to buy a house because they're lazy and "only want to work four hours" a day.
However, Gen Zers are facing setbacks because of high levels of inflation and rising prices. They're even shopping less and eating at home more to save money, a Bank of America survey found in an August survey.
The members of the young generation have hit back at some of these accusations, saying that they're not prioritizing work because wages have stagnated, they're unfulfilled by the mundane 9-to-5 life, and they're burned out.
