More than eight out of ten Gen Z’ers – 83% to be exact – call themselves “job hoppers” and plan to change jobs early and often. Even for a generation considered more transitory than their older siblings – much less their parents or grandparents – the number is startling.
Coming from a new study by ResumeLab, the results show a demographic group that is clearly playing by a new set of rules, ones employers will need to understand and be better prepared to deal with.
According to a report in Fast Company magazine, “The survey found that 78% of Gen Z workers plan to spend somewhere between two and five years with their current employers. The majority of those respondents, 43%, plan to stay put for just two years; 22% of workers are willing to stick it out for three years; and a mere 13% plan to stick around for four years or more.”
These findings are largely unaffected by level of education: 92% of the survey group with master’s degrees said they were job hoppers while 77% with no degrees described themselves the same way. The survey included 1,100 workers born between the mid-1990s and the early 2010s.
So, what’s driving this big trend? The survey found it’s not necessarily money or even a disconnect with the company they are working for. Fast Company reported that “the top reasons Gen Z workers leave their positions are working too much overtime, a clash of values with their employers and feeling unhappy because of their jobs.” Three out of four workers said they would be willing to leave their positions even if they didn’t have other jobs waiting for them.
What should employers do to try to retain their workforce? Flexible work schedules, healthcare packages and regular pay raises are the biggest things Gen Z workers are looking for but as the Fast Company report says, “Still, don’t expect those workers to stick around forever.”