Leaders must boost their duty of care for Gen Z staff
As today marks the UN's International Youth Day, Sue Parker, owner of Dare Group Australia, discusses why it is vital for leaders to look after Gen Z in the workplace, and talks to four industry heads on the state of play.
Do you recall your first job in the media and marketing world? How were you treated? You would have been around 18 to 24 years old, which is today’s Gen Z workforce.
Today the 12th of August is International Youth Day. So an opportune time to discuss a problem that has pervaded the media and marketing industry for eons – the mistreatment of young staff.
International Youth Day is a global United Nations initiative addressing issues impacting 15 to 24-year-olds. This cohort represent 26% of the world’s population and 18% of the Australian population.
The 2024 theme is From Clicks to Progress: Youth Digital Pathways for Sustainable Development. The Secretary General of the UN, António Guterres said “achieving the Sustainable Development Goals requires a seismic shift – which can only happen if we empower young people and work with them as equals”.
Source: United Nations
What a terrific clarion call for both sustainability and how workplaces can positively impact young people.
The issues of Gen Z being mis-treated, over-worked, under-paid and treated like puppets is not just the citadel of the media sector but all industries. And whilst stories of horrific bullying and intimidation many will recall from their younger days may not be as drastic now, there are still many issues that erode and harm.
Debunking Gen Z stereotypes
What sets Gen Z apart from other generations is their first global generation status. They don’t know a world without digital technology and were immeasurably impacted by Covid years.
But it’s illogical to lump them in the same pot. The narrative that Gen Z are all entitled and difficult is untrue. Such a lumping applies equally to the older end of the ageism spectrum. There are so many cultural, environmental and social influences that determine behaviours and personalities.
It’s ironic that every generation bemoans the younger that ‘young people today want it all and don’t want to work’.
Look, some Gen Z are lazy and some the total opposite. Some want the world yesterday, some not.
McKinsey & Company reported in debunking age-based myths about worker preferences that what workers want across generations are more myth than fact.
They reported the main reasons for leaving a job are the same across all generations: inadequate compensation, lack of career development & advancement and uncaring leadership.
What is important to Gen Z?
Research by Statista Research Department is a great reference point in what makes Gen Z workers tick and a great discussion topic.
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Why leaders must boost their care
Global research by Deloitte’s 2024 Gen Z and Millennial Survey: Living and working with purpose in a transforming world found 61% of Gen Z experienced harassment or micro-aggressions in the past year.
Deloitte’s reported only 51% of Gen Z rated their mental health as good to very good. Further, 40% felt stressed most/all of the time with financial concerns and family welfare being major stressors. Jobs, long working hours and lack of recognition were prominent issues.
Difficult workplaces and bullying are nothing new but the need for leaders to take greater care of young people under their watch is vital.
Young people face greater challenges today with economic and environmental instability, health, community and global threats at heightened levels. And on average 1 in 5 people will have come from a family of abuse.
Leaders must be kinder and more empathetic whilst recognising their huge responsibility in shaping young lives.
Thoughts from a few industry leaders
I spoke to a few leaders on their observations on the state of play:
Darren Woolley, CEO of Trinity P3 has strong feedback on the prevalence of young people being mistreated in the industry. Whilst the issue of young people being exploited and expected to live at their desks for 12 hours a day hasn’t abated over the decades there has been a disturbing systematic shift.
Whilst intergenerational mistreatment and bullying is ubiquitous (managers who had been mistreated repeating the behaviours onto their own staff) Darren says the fee profile of agencies and inherent collapse of middle management has amplified young people being poorly treated.
“The agency profile change has seen the decimation of middle managers alongside greater number of juniors employed without the support and direction required. This impacts their confidence whilst being held unfairly accountable for mistakes without hands on guidance. When juniors are given ‘promotional titles’ they generally feel a sense of imposter syndrome and ill equipped to handle the extra work,” he said.
“Turnover and agency client dissatisfaction and ultimately a swathe of young people leaving the industry results. But the bigger issue is the attitude of quantity by leaders that they expect a high percentage of churn, so why bother investing in middle management support.”
Emma Macey, GAD at Atomic 212º shared insightful observations on the impact of younger people often being micromanaged in the industry.
“Ineffective leaders who don’t trust others will often target younger people. This destroys their confidence and capacity for greater contributions,” she said.
She advised leaders to check in to their stereotype biases of young people and respect the value that this younger generation brings to the table.
Joe Pardillo, MD at Ryvalmedia is a bastion of being a good human citizen and treating staff well. But he has seen a shift in the industry in recent years where there is less understanding between the generations and the value they bring. Joe observes the voices of Gen Z are stronger than ever and leaders need to elevate their management approach.
In a market with great financial stress and job volatility Joe encourages agencies to set up more opportunities for younger people to be give their voice and be part of culture committees.
“Not all leaders are great at managing young staff and agencies must place clear emphasis on monitoring leadership behaviours and the impact they have on others. A culture of feedback and openness will go a long way to minimise staff risk, unfair expectations and disrespect.”
Alice Almeida, head research & insights at Totally Awesome has been researching Gen Z for many years. She says they are a misunderstood generation and leaders must unpack their own stereotypes and biases so workplaces thrive. Alice says that young people today are very much aware of power imbalance at work and not willing to put up with the level of mistreatment as previous generations did.
Her research show most Gen Z care about social movements and issues and are willing to stand up for themselves. This means they will not tolerate toxic and hostile workplaces and will leave.
They are more aware of their mental health and what respectful workplaces and boundaries are via social media. And they are more aware of legislation rights.
It really is vital in 2024 and beyond to take every opportunity to guide young people in your commercial care and the leaders I spoke with above certainly are on board with that tenet also.
Sue Parker, owner of Dare Group Australia, is a communications, job search and career specialist.
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