New kids on the block | Understanding the needs and expectations of the latest generation of workers

When we take a step back and compare the last few generations to enter the workforce, there are a multitude of factors that could cause their outlooks to differ when it comes to employment.

Generation Z (born between 1996 and 2010) now represent our newest pool of working talent and have been shaped by an upbringing steeped in technology, financial and environmental uncertainty and the COVID-19 pandemic.

Making decisions for them, and them alone

One of the key generational differences is the noticeably longer time taken for young UK adults to marry and start families; statistically, heterosexual couples today won’t have their first child until they enter their 30s, whereas the norm in their parents’ generation was between 24 and 25¹. This postponement and even sometimes abandonment of having children altogether has been reported by young people to be because of the greater time and freedom that comes with a child-free existence, allowing them to leave jobs more readily that don’t complement their lifestyle or satisfy their needs².

This mindset has paved the way for a recent phenomenon known as ‘job-hopping’, which has seen the average job tenure for Gen Z applicants drop to 2 years and 2 months – under half of that of Gen X (5 years) and nearly a quarter of the average for Baby Boomers (8 years)³.