Employers on twentysomethings: ‘Everything has to be fun, or they leave’

AMSTERDAM: Employers are annoyed by twentysomethings. Companies are struggling with the young people now entering the labour market. They find employees from so-called Generation Z demanding, unprofessional and expensive on top of that. “Business owners and managers still have to get used to the fact that for these twentysomethings, life is about more than work.”

The first Gen Z youngsters have now been working for about five years. They were born between 1997 and 2012 and were the first generation on the labour market to grow up fully online. They're heavy users of Instagram and TikTok. Social media was their lifeline to the outside world during the long forced isolation the corona pandemic meant for them.

Part-time: recruiting young people means fewer man-hours

All of this may explain the laid-back work attitude (in the eyes of many older people) of the newcomers to the labour market, but companies are struggling with it. For example, they still have to get used to the fact that these twentysomethings like to work part-time. “When looking for staff, I tell employers they can hire four people for 20 hours a week. Instead of searching for a year for those two full-timers who fit the picture perfectly,” says Bos. To recruit Gen Z, his team uses employer branding campaigns, among other things.

More than half of employers (52%) also complain that young people are expensive. They find their starting salary “ridiculously high, which encourages pay imbalances”. The twentysomethings are also “more easily distracted by unimportant side issues” and “think they can get promoted within a year”, according to almost half of employers. This too makes recruiting young people increasingly difficult for employers.

More diverse: recruiting Gen Z goes hand in hand with unprofessional behaviour

There's also irritation about unprofessional behaviour. Almost half of managers think these employees use far too many abbreviations or all sorts of buzzwords with colleagues and customers. At the same time, only a third of employers have adapted their rules on behaviour and dress to attract more diverse and inclusive staff. For example, they allow tattoos, piercings, crop tops and ripped jeans. An equally large group says it won't do that.

“There's still a lot of misunderstanding at companies when they recruit Gen Z,” Bos notes. “But as an employer you'll have to deal with it if you want to recruit young people. Lots of employers are annoyed by twentysomethings, but for this generation life is about more than work. Meanwhile the labour market is tight and jobs are there for the taking. So it makes sense that they make demands. Financially too. The rents young people have to pay, for example, are also much higher relative to their income than ten years ago.”

Over-sixties increasingly in demand

Employers are annoyed by twentysomethings, but turn out to be more positive about over-sixties than last year. No less than 60% say they're likely to offer an older person a job now. Despite the tight labour market, there's little change when it comes to other groups ’with a blemish’. Anyone who has had a burnout or has been in prison still hardly stands a chance of getting work.