A couple of blogs ago I mentioned I was going to channel my inner Nostradamus (usually used for writing football articles, placing bets, and pre approaching girls) to predict just what the repercussions of this recession will be on Gen Y.
Gen Y is currently and over the past couple of years sent a record amount of highly educated, technology savvy, and angst filled young people to the workplace/ real world. It’s always been my opinion that Gen Y is destined for great things on all fronts, so it’s a little disheartening to see such a big impediment to that greatness lurking over so many young people’s transition the real world. It’s even more disheartening to think that you can almost completely absolve Gen Y for as a cause for this recession.
This seems to be a hot topic, one that has been explored by more serious journalists of late. However I should note that most of these articles were written by Gen Xer’s and while they were well thought out, they lacked some real perspective from the front lines of being in your early-mid twenties, in the workforce, and watching as the economy crumbles faster then the Berlin Wall with Hasslehoff blaring in the background. That’s where I come in.
Most articles I have read on this topic give 5 reasons why Gen Y will either survive or suffer during the recession. I will grade their merits below.
Prediction #1 – This is Gen Y’s first recession and our naiveness to this type of thing will hurt us dearly
“Generation Y professionals don’t know what to expect or how to get through difficult times in a company. Unlike Baby Boomers and Generation X, Gen Y lacks the benefit of hindsight.”
My take: This is pretty much a sham. There will a be a lot of young more fragile people where this economy will serve as last straw in forcing career changes, changing expectation levels, the need for more schooling, or pushing someone from a white collar job to a services or blue collar job.
Basically some people who are on the fence about getting into a professional setting or are barely hanging on, will suffer. With so many young people trying to get their careers off the ground, or not far along in their careers this economy and our inexperience dealing with one will obviously be detrimental.
That being said, I think we’re being sold short here. This economy is going to hurt everyone, and implying that we will be somewhat blinded to it doesn’t make any sense. This is Gen Y we’re talking about. We consume more media then anyone with extra emphasis on television and the internet.
The recession is jammed down my throat in both of those mediums and is the topic of conversation often when out socially as young people are sharing their stories, strategies, and best practices to dig in for it. Anyone who thinks our heads are in the sand and that we cannot learn to buckle down spending, place a premuim on job sercurity and performance, and sustain ambition and focus going forward is grossly out of touch with us.
We’re going to suffer just like everyone, but not because of our lack of experience dealing with a recession. We learn quickly, network better, and are too entrenched in reality via digital media and cable programming too get surpised by this thing. Also it doesn’t hurt that young people voted for Obama at nearly a 2:1 ratio and it’s been a huge point of emphasis for him in the press and his weekly video podcasts.
Prediction #2 – Gen Y’s weaker ties/attachment to Corporate America will help
“Rosemary Haefner, CareerBuilder VP of human resources, notes that this cavalier attitude Gen Y has toward its employers might make it easier for Gen Y to cope with layoffs or to decide to find a new job before they get the axe.”
My Take: The arguement is largely true although the experts believe that our “cavalier attitude” stems from older generations (mostly parents) getting burned by corporate America when the going got tough.
I do think that we’ll be able to rebound better from layoffs and will be a little more nimble getting out of jobs that are in limbo. Ofcourse as mentioned some people on the fence will find it hard to rebound.
Where I disagree is that our cavalier attitude of not embracing corporate America stems from work experience and the media’s influence on us in their presentation of corporate America.
Many young people including myself have joined the ranks of Fortune 1000 companies only to find ourselves disenchanted with the smaller roles we have to play at the bottom of the chain as people we view as not as bright but more experienced sit above us. There was a day and an age where having a big time name on your resume really wowed employers, friends, and family. Now not so much.
Gen Y would rather be challenged, appreciated, pushed, and emotionally involved at a smaller company rather then at a larger firm. Obviously this is not true for everyone, but there is a noticeable trend of younger employees migrating away from larger firms to smaller firms such as smb’s, startups, or botique/niche firms.
Also I think we’ve really got a lot of anti corporate America perspective via media like Office Space, The Big One, etc. In a nutshell, we’ve been mocking the corporate workplace place for quite awhile. It also doesn’t help that some of the biggest industries such as airlines, autos, insurance, banking, are some of the worst performers during this recession and do not come off as cool/innovative/ or fun to Gen Y.
Prediction 3- Our inability to handle uncertainty will drive us crazy and be detrimental to us
My Take: There was little explanation of this one. Just that we don’t handle uncertainty will not work well with pressing issues such as mergers, bankruptcy, and layoffs potentially looming.
I kind of agree. Generally thinking, we tend to over think things (myself included). But is that really going to hurt us? I think there will be some loss of focus while we worry, but I think we’re adept to tuning out any lurking worries especially at the workplace.
We’ll freak out more on our on time, and not as much on the companies.
Prediction 4- Our Lower Salaries Make us a little Safer from Massive Layoffs
“Companies might get rid of senior executives and front line mangers who are being paid higher salaries to cut fat and where they could move a younger person into those positions for less pay,”
My Take: Generally I agree with this line of thinking. We’re typically pretty good bargains, often doing a better job then someone 10-25 years older then us who is making a LOT more.I think larger companies will look to cut under performers in middle management before looking at the entry level.
However a lot of companies hired large amounts of entry level positions believing their businesses would be stable and potentially grow in the short term. That’s not the case, so a lot of young people are getting let go. I’ve seen this a lot, and its really depressing as its almost 100% tied to the economy and not performance.
I wish I could say we’re generally safe because we are great bargains and ambitious to move up quickly but the fact remains that some companies are eliminating a lot of entry level jobs.
Prediction 5- Last one hired is sometimes the first one fired.
My Take: Pretty self explanatory here. A company of 100 adds 20 new people during the summer planning on growth in 2009. The company realizes that growth is not going to happen and decides to cut 20 people.
In this scenario, a large % of the new hires will be in jeopardy although there will be some house cleaning elsewhere.
This is a reality, as I implied in prediction 4. However when layoffs come there are always older higher paid people who’s employment has been considered questionable internally. A lot of newer employees who are doing well can often be spared and even promoted during the carnage because the recession gives them an opportunity to get rid of these type of employees. Still though, there are a lot of young people recently hired fresh out of school who have been hit by the recent layoffs.
Prediction 6- Gen Y doesn’t have big financial burdens and can survive longer while unemployed
My Take: This is pretty accurate although we have a knack are ramping up spending instead of saving. While a good amount of Gen Y’s have taken the plunge into home ownership or the purchasing/leasing of a new car, overall we’re not saddle bagged by huge financial obligations.
That’s a plus, but still living at home is going to drive a lot of young people crazy after being independent at college.
Prediction 7- Lack of work Work Experience will hurt us
Argument: “Because they’ve spent the previous four years in college, they don’t know how to dress or act appropriately in professional settings, and that puts their employment at risk.
“Over 80 percent of them own a cell phone,” says Crane. “Yet none of them use their cell phones to call people. They use them to text message. Employers are finding that when they suddenly put these people in an interview, they’re not used to normal discourse. They’re used to seeing questions pop up on their cell phone.”
My Take: I agree that our lack of work experience will hurt us during the recession, but the explanation given makes no sense. Could Mary Crane and the rest of this explanation be any further from reality?
We do not make calls on cell phones? Our interview skills are bad because we don’t know how to communicate in person? We don’t know how to dress or act in a professional setting? Was Mary Crane the career coach on the show “From G’s to Gents?”
The lack of experience will mostly hurt as Gen Y will fail to see the big picture in terms of their employment in regard to the company. Cutbacks are happening and will be on going, and many employees have wiggle room to improve their chances for continued employment by adjusting their work habits, work politics, etc.
Gen Y will not be as good at this as their older peers and that’s where the lack of experience will come into a play. Our supposed lack of professionalism and supposed inability to properly communicate when not done via text message will play no role because that’s just a flat out talking out of your ass explanation.
Prediction 8- Gen Y’s Multi Tasking abilities will help them adapt to dramatically changing work environments.
My Take: This is very accurate. Old/Older people imo are not as nimble, flexible, or diverse in work habits then Gen Y. We rock here, and if massive overhauls in processes, responsibilities, and corporate structure occurs we’ll be the best at adapting out of anyone.
In particular look how successful we are to adopting/embracing emerging technologies. Older folks, not so much and they’re going to less enthusiastic/ stubborn when change comes.
Prediction 9- We’re Fragile and Will Take a Layoff Pretty Harshly. Rebounding will be hard
Argument: “Such child-rearing practices neglect to teach kids how to cope with real life or to digest criticism, generational experts say. Instead, those approaches to child psychology created a generation of young professionals with over-inflated egos, who are unprepared for the sometimes harsh, often thankless environment that is the workplace.
Consequently, when members of Generation Y get handed a pink slip instead of a promotion, the experience can be crushing for them, says Crane. “They might not be able to cope with a layoff because they don’t know how to rebound,” she says.”
My take: Unfortunately there is a lot of truth here. We’re already a little skeptical of this whole corporate America and layoffs right off the bat are going to a) make us more jaded b) kill our confidence c) make us question everything and anything.
I do feel, that there are a lot of young people that will take a pink slip like a champ and I’ve actually seen it happening. Most people I know are mature about it and know its mostly circumstances and not personal. I know a lot of them are probably hurting emotionally, but are doing a great job moving on and that’s very encouraging.
On the flip side, I know some people who are really struggling to move on and it could be awhile before they get out of an extended funk. A lot of young people are also using layoffs as a catalyst for going back to school or career changes. I think a lot of of Gen Y will move to fields like nursing, teaching, non profit work, services, and trades because of the tough economy. There will also be a decent contingency that will cling onto financial dependency either via their parents or significant other. Lucky bastards.
Prediction 10: We’re effing smart and will hang in there
Argument: “I think the Millenials are aware enough of what is happening in this business climate. They’re not stupid,” she says. “If an employer has to let 10 percent of its workforce go to cut costs, they will understand things are amiss and that it’s up to them to be good employees. I don’t think their demanding behavior will continue if they’re seeing people being let go and lives being devastated. As demanding and spoiled as they can be, the Millenials are also extremely mindful and caring of others.
My Take: Damn straight! We’re a really smart bunch. Book smart, street smart, and whatever type of smart you want to throw in there. We may be spoiled/entitled/inexperienced, but our level of aptitude overrules those negative traits in most cases. We get it. The economy is imploding worse then Plaxico’s Burress’s image in 2008. We’ll adjust and become stronger from it.
