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I’m in my 30s, but “work smarter not harder” has really seemed to take hold of the younger crowd. All my friends in tech laugh about how little they actually work during the week.
I think there has been some movement in regard to long term stability among the <35 group.
Meaning people are more likely to change jobs 3 or 4 times before they start a family, which is generally the point when career mobility stops.
Overall though, there are good workers, there are shitty workers, age generally isn’t the indicator.
I think a lot of college educated people think physical labor and menial office work is “beneath” them. It seems like our new hires all join the company expecting to be a VP within 10 years.
It went from having a stable office job and purchasing a single family home to preferring remote work and living in city centers.
Well, my dad didn’t spend any holidays with us so he could get the 25 cent bump holiday pay.
I know I wouldn’t do that and I’d spend the time with my family instead.
There’s less reason to be loyal to a company when there’s no pension and you already know they’d be putting out the linkedin job description if you died that morning
Working yourself half to death doesn’t make you a better person. I think people are starting to take mental and physical health more seriously, and work/life balance is becoming more important.
My husband, who’s a machinist, started working where it was mandatory OT. He would work 65 hour weeks. Now they have to change their mandatory OT and are switching to a 40 hour Monday- Thursday or Friday- Sunday model because the younger generation wants more of a home- work life balance. I completely agree with the younger generation and I’m glad they’re making changes.
The “american work ethic” even in my short lifetime is undergoing a drastic change from that of hard work and loyalty, to a couple divergent paths. One path, that seems to be dying out, believes that hard work and loyalty to the business is how to live a stable life, and accepting the hard times. The other sees that as toxic and aims for improved benefits and workers rights, with less stability for the company they say is already disloyal to the workers. As a younger person, the second route is what is winning out in my generation from what I see. Will it last once we’re on the older half, or will people younger than us feel differently? only time will tell.
Started working full time in 1985.
Office work at first. We had to wear pantyhose & dress up everyday. I worked much much more than I should’ve for that company.
Auto assembly work next-I loved that job and worked every single minute of OT I could get, I never missed a days work in 7 years. I’d do that job again if I could.
Currently office work again.
I clock in in the morning and out at 5pm. I’ve never worked a minute that I wasn’t paid in over 22 years. I’ve called in sick many times and I don’t think about this job *at all* after I leave. I’ve got great medical insurance, that’s the main reason I have this job.
I’ll retire from this job and won’t miss is for a second.
I don’t think I’m jaded, I think I’ve just gotten older.
I still do my job to the best of my ability every day, I’m just not killing myself for a company that can replace me in no time.
I used to work hard because I thought it would help me progress my career. Now I do what I need to and nothing more because nobody gives a shit what I do as long as I do the bare minimum.
How hard people work has not changed. What’s changed is how long they stay in one place. I’m an anachronism, 57 years old and 35 years at my employer. No one does that any more!
Well, I can tell you that, since my parent’s day (when they learned the lessons they passed on to me), there were concepts like “seniority” (where, if you were on the job longest, you were prioritized for promotions, raises etc), being a “company man”, internal “floor to corner office” training, internal career tracks, company loyalty, etc. that simply didn’t apply once people my age got to the workforce.
(For instance, internal training is why people used to be able to do that “handshake, straight out of high school” thing, and that basically got replaced with external college or for-profit technical training, to externalize that cost onto the employee.)
I sort of came in around the time that large-scale firings or layoffs were rebranded as “downsizing” or “streamlining” the company, hiring from outside was favored over hiring someone who stayed with you for years (on the theory that people who stay at one job for decades are unambitious, not loyal), etc. but also expected all the little benefits that the employer got under the old model. (Sure, I’ll put in unpaid overtime for the good of “the company family”, mister!, etc.)
Like, I have a friend who, when she was working for Sears, was made (for free) to attend a pep talk where the manager said “if you’re just here for the paycheck, we don’t want you”. As if its UNICEF or an animal shelter or whatever. The paycheck was all they offered, why *not* just turn up for it? I mean, make sure they get what they paid for, and don’t be a jerk about it, but that’s what they get.
Older people than me sometimes say younger folks don’t have work ethic- I would say that their work ethic is fine, just better adapted for the realities of the labor universe they found.
(This of course is because the business world is really different, too. My parents never had to worry their entire company would be moved to Mexico or Asia, or just replaced by an online retailer.)
There’s acknowledgent that long-term loyalty to a company that always favors “new blood” is dumb, because what’s the payoff?
There’s no “putting in favors” for management that won’t remember it, and when the company itself might not even exist in two years. Knowing that your employer may *call* you “essential” but will treat you like an annoying surcharge isn’t helping matters.
I’ve gotten to work with people in their 20s, now, and they were diligent, curious, and consistent- everything I was told to be- but also kept an eye out for new ships to jump to, and made career building their own responsibility in ways neither I nor my elders did.
Some people wanting “American work ethic” ‘back’ seem to want feudal loyalty for no competitive reason. Just because they’re “job creators”.
(Like, a few years ago, I was talking to a guy who had a temporary job at a pizza place while looking for work involving his IT training. The pizza place’s computer system failed, and the management wanted him to “do the IT” at pizza-guy wages, and were genuinely surprised when he counteroffered with reasonable rates for that work. They felt they were owed “doing whatever he can” at the minimum they were paying for a different job altogether.)
The only thing I have heard, as criticism, that seems valid to me is this idea that some younger workers treat job tasks as missions in a game- this is what I’m supposed to do, here I did it, gimme my gold or XP or what have you- rather than looking for new things to do. But even this has its reasons- gig economy jobs *are* task/reward oriented, and in a lot of situations, initiative isn’t rewarded.
(I remember a temp job I was given, where the estimate on a job was three days. I did it- to specs- in a day and a half, and my reward was to get to go home, paid for a day and a half. No followup. Giving it your all is sometimes penalized.)
I teach workshops for a work-force development organization. We do a workshop on teamwork that features a section about getting along and working with different generations. Here’s some key notes from that presentation (I’m still not 100% comfortable with it, since it does make some general assumptions):
**Traditionalists: Born before 1946**
* Dependable/Straightforward/Tactful/Loyal
* Shaped By: The Great Depression, World War II, Radio & Movies
* Motivated By: Respect, Recognition, Providing Long-Term Value to the Company
* Communication Style: Personal Touch, handwritten notes instead of email
* Worldview: Obedience over individualism; age equals seniority; advancing through the hierarchy
**Baby Boomers: Born 1946-1964**
* Optimistic/Competitive/Workaholic/Team-Oriented
* Shaped By: Vietnam War, Civil Rights Movement, Watergate
* Motivated By: Company Loyalty, Teamwork, Duty
* Communication Style: Whatever is most efficient, including phone calls and face to face
* Worldview: Achievement comes after paying one’s dues; sacrifice for success
**Generation X: Born 1965-1980**
* Flexible/Informal/Skeptical/Independent
* Shaped By: The fall of the Berlin Wall, the dot-com boom
* Motivated By: Diversity, work-life balance, their personal-professional interests rather than the company’s interest
* Communication Style: Whatever is most efficient, including phone calls and face to face
* Worldview: Favoring diversity; quick to move on if their employer fails to meet their needs; resistant to change at work if it affects their personal lives
**Millennials / Gen Y: Born 1981-1996**
* Competitive/Civic and Open Minded/Achievement-Oriented
* Shaped By: Columbine, 9/11, the internet. *[On a personal note, I like to call us the “Youtube” generation]*
* Motivated By: Responsibility, the quality of their manager, unique work experiences
* Communication Style: IMs, texts, and email
* Worldview: Seeking challenge, growth, and development; a fun work life and work-life balance; likely to leave an organization if they don’t like change
**Generation Z: Born 1997-2012**
* Global/Entrepreneurial/Progressive/Less Focused
* Shaped By: Life after 9/11, the Great Recession, access to technology from a young age
* Motivated By: Diversity, personalization, individuality, creativity
* Communication Style: IMs, texts, social media
* Worldview: Self-identify as digital device addicts; value independence and individuality; prefer to work with Millennial managers, innovative coworkers, and new technologies
**Generation Alpha: Born after 2012 (Not yet in workforce)**
We don’t know what will happen here, but we at work feel COVID and the current wave of civil rights movements are going to be major events that shape this generation. Potentially, the Ukraine/Russia war too if it gets bigger or goes on for a long time. We’re expecting strong competency with technology obviously, but I personally feel this generation is also going to really strive to find the tech/no-tech life balance and work hard towards getting in touch with nature or non-technology activities.
———————-
My personal thoughts:
* In general, younger Americans are done with “pull yourself up by your bootstraps,” and “just get a job and work harder” mentality. This is a positive look at it, not negative. Life is not just about the work you do anymore, unless for some, it’s their own business. Many are now focused on a healthy work-life balance, and are more focused on how they want to live, not what they want to do to live…away from “what do you do for a living?” to “how do you live?” As someone else said, it’s about working smarter, not harder. We’re finding a lot of quality work can be done with just a fraction of time they have been done in the past with the right training, right systems, and right attention to detail.
* Due to inflation and economics, benefits are starting to trump pay. If jobs won’t pay enough to get by, people are going to start only working for companies that offer really good benefit packages. People going forward would rather risk trying to start their own business, or use their personal networks to get into companies with good pay and benefits rather than going through the anguish of working unskilled minimum wage jobs that don’t pay enough to get by, or going through the stress of college, going into major debt, then try to get a job in a field where they may not even stay. Heck, many people today won’t even work an easy-to-get unskilled job if it doesn’t pay enough. They’d rather scramble and fight to get what little money they can through their own independent working ventures, whether it’s doing odd jobs here and there that they enjoy, or starting their own businesses. Again, I like this, because it means people are more focused on doing what they love doing, and contributing to society on their terms rather than accepting being miserable doing things they don’t want to do just to say they have a job and get any kind of pay.
* Workforce trends show people are becoming less and less loyal to their fields or companies, and are more focused on again, living life. More and more people are willing to jump and change fields or companies when they feel disrespected or de-valued, or if they just get bored and want to do something new.
* Having said that, there’s still an understanding that you do need to work hard for whatever it is you want in life, so whatever it is, you have to commit to it, whether it’s going to trade schools, college, or networking your way into a field. People are being more encouraged to utilize their interests or natural strengths rather than trying to shoe-horn themselves into good paying fields or jobs where they really don’t have the mindset, passion, or natural ability for. How people pursue their careers on their own terms is being more and more accepted than the traditional “go to college and work in a good paying field,” mentality.
Like the stages of grief, but I’m still on anger.
Another way to think about this is How has the American employer changed over your lifetime.
I remember when companies had huge picnics at amusment parks for ALL the employees. We got a turkey at Thanksgiving and Christmas. You didn’t have a new management mantra we had to take a seminar on and then in a year when a new manager came along, we had a NEW mission statement.
There doesn’t feel like there a company to be loyal to anymore. It’s just stockholders workers have to please.
Probably varies massively depending on where you live and what kind of job you do, but it does seem like we’re sliding away from the Puritan “brag about how you work 80 hour weeks and never see your family” work ethic.
Conversely, it’s much more common than it used to be for someone to work 2-3 shitty part time jobs with little or no benefits, instead of one full time job that’s expected to support an entire family. I know a lot of employers who now ONLY hire “temp” workers so they can get away with no sick time, no health insurance, etc. and then automatically lay you off on day 364 so they can claim you were never a permanent employee. With this kind of shit going on from their side, I fully embrace the new memes about sharing salary info with coworkers and only working just hard enough not to get fired.
I grew up under the impression that working your ass off meant a company would recognize the effort and reward it with promotions and more money. I now realize that they simply reward it with more work and the best way to truly make more money is to go out and find another job.
I also grew thinking that working more hours was a virtue. Now, I don’t bother with jobs that have an expectation of > 40 hours.
In my job, safety has become a much bigger priority than it used to be. There’s a lot more paperwork and coordination these days to make sure there’s minimal risk to both employees and to unexpected shutdowns of our equipment with employees taking precedent. Used to be that you do what it takes to get things done on time. Now you do what it takes to make sure people are working safe, even if it delays things.
Granted, we are a government organization and not profit motivated, so we don’t have as many concerns about meeting schedules as you might see in the private sector.
People used to think it was so dedicated to come to work sick, never take a sick day.
I think Covid changed that forever.
The idea that there’s actually no real reason to be loyal to a company that shows you none in return seems to have percolated.
It’s true- it just flies in the face of ‘conventional’ wisdom of past decades where you were a good boy and kept your head down and let the company do whatever to you. At least some folks seem to have realized that whole spiel was mostly intended to get you to accept getting fucked.
If you are too good at your job you will never get promoted because they don’t want to replace you in your current job.
A lot of people I know (millennials and zoomers, mostly) work hard despite the older generations calling them lazy, but these days they have a “fuck you, pay me” mentality toward work. I think that’s the way it should be – you should work hard, but don’t give a company that doesn’t give a shit about you more work than they’re willing to pay you for.
Maybe 10-15 years ago, the narrative was “doing this and this might get you noticed and get you in bosses’ good graces even if it means putting in more work for less money” but now it’s the workers taking charge and saying “I’ll do this and this if you pay me for it, I don’t care about the rest.” I think that’s a wonderful thing.
You can’t actually find a way up anymore. Used to be that you’d have a pretty good life working a job and all. Not anymore.
The American Work Ethic was enticing because there was a reward for it. Doesn’t seem like it works that way anymore.
It hasn’t. We just have people who like to mythologize their childhood as if people back then were less flawed than people today.
If anything, people are more self-driven, not less.
At the same time, people do not stay at jobs for life any longer. And I don’t think that’s necessarily a bad thing.
I think younger / smarter people are increasingly skeptical of it as labor is increasingly exploited with diminishing rewards. On the flip side, I think there’s been a huge upsurge in pyramid schemes as there are an increasing number both of people who should know better but are in desperate situations, and people who were simply failed by our educational system.
I’m 26, so I don’t have a long personal perspective, but as a kid I was taught at school that if I went to college and worked hard I could have a nice life where I didn’t worry about where my next meal was coming from; at the same time, my two college-educated parents were working 60+ hours a week and missing holidays and still not always able to consistently maintain a middle-class lifestyle. I don’t expect I’ll ever be able to own a home or retire, no matter what I do — my talents and passions lie in service, which does not pay very well. So I’ll do what I can because I love it, but if my employer expects me to do more, they can pay me for it or stuff it.
I’m not going to take the side of management or employees. Management typically doesn’t care about you and would replace you in a minute with someone cheaper. Employees tend to have little loyalty to their employer, perhaps understandably so.
But today lots of companies offer good wages and safe working conditions post-Covid. People who complain about not being able to find work aren’t trying that hard.
As others have said, most people I know don’t have much loyalty to their employer. Companies really have done a lot to fuck over their workers in the last half-century so trust in employers and sticking around with an employer is much rarer.
Less breaking your back for the honor of your employer, more working jobs that pay rent and moving companies when the current position either has an issue or won’t pay enough comparatively
I’m 45.
When I was younger, adults worked for their company forever and left to retire. Now, it is customary, regardless of job title or level, to move from company to company every 2 years or so. No company loyalty anymore, likely because companies have no loyalty to their workers.
When I was younger, my parents worked occasional overtime. I was a latchkey kid, so it wasn’t because of lack of childcare. We weren’t rich, but my understanding is that we were not living paycheck to paycheck. I would say we were lower-middle class mostly. Now, people are expected to give up all their free time to the company, or to have a “side hustle” (I really hate that term), or to have multiple jobs. And even with all the extra work, most people still struggle to even reach lower-middle class. (By statistics.)
Mostly what I see now is people struggling hard to keep jobs they actively hate because the pay is just good enough to pay the bills while trying to figure out how to get out from under a company that treats them badly so they can go do almost anything else.
My dad was a company man, when that was still a thing. He had a company car, we went to company outings, and when he left he got a company pension. None of that really exists today, or at least not to the same extent.
I am a job guy. I work jobs for companies until I can find a better paying one. I’ll likely never be vested in the mental or financial way my dad was to his company and because of that, will never have his level of job security.
Work is getting better for businesses and worse for workers.