Are U.S. employees ready for Gen Z? After reading Lynn Curry’s employment piece, the answer seems like an emphatic “no.” But here’s the problem: Any possible solutions Ms. Curry offers up seem to feed right into the slacking and distraction and laziness that characterize Gen Z as a group and what got us here in the first place.
Being a “work parent” isn’t a choice most employers want to make or sign onto. Constantly “providing constructive feedback that proves you want them to be successful and notice when they do something right” sounds a lot like what you should do with your 11-year-old at home.
How about this? It’s time to grow up. A job is a job. It’s called work for a reason. What about setting the expectation that a new employee shows up on time, dressed appropriately, has their mind on work and figured out a strategy to be a productive employee as a condition of employment?
That way, employers can hopefully bypass or quickly weed out the 50% of Gen-Z-ers who intend to leave their jobs in the next year and the one in four who plan to leave in the next six months. Heads up: They were never going to be long-term productive employees anyway.
Perhaps it’s time to look more closely at mid-career retraining for productive workers or even opportunities to rehire seniors and end-of-career workers who have shown they get it. And we can check back in with Gen Z in their 30s. They sure look like they need the extra time just to figure out the basics of work-life reality in America.
— Hal Homer
Palmer
Have something on your mind? Send to letters@adn.com or click here to submit via any web browser. Letters under 200 words have the best chance of being published. Writers should disclose any personal or professional connections with the subjects of their letters. Letters are edited for accuracy, clarity and length.