Work Ethic Differences
There have been many surveys about Gen Z’s beliefs and values that I decided to discuss some of them and share my thoughts. Like the Millennials before them, Gen Z have been criticized for the lack of a work ethic. In the case of Millennials, it was a sense of entitlement that prioritized their needs above those of the employer. Gen Z, on the other hand, seek growth, respect, and purpose—and step back when these are missing.
Only 6% of Generation Z workers say their primary career goal is to reach a leadership position, according to Deloitte’s “2025 Gen Z and Millennial Survey.” Instead of viewing this as a lack of ambition, astute employers will recognize it as a wake-up call about what motivates the future workforce in a post-social contract age.
What we are witnessing is Gen Z rejecting a system where leadership often means more stress, longer hours and minimal work-life balance for incremental pay increases. Their workplace expectations could actually correct outdated practices that harm productivity and employee well-being. Given that researchers at Forrester predict 74% of the global workforce will be Gen Z by 2030, understanding their perspective isn’t optional—it’s essential for organizational survival.
A survey by The Resume Builder survey of 1,000 U.S. Gen Z workers (ages 18–29) documents what those workers themselves now say about their lack of a work ethic.
- 2 in 3 (67%) Gen Z workers say they’ve been disciplined, underpaid, or passed over because of skills they were never taught at home.
- 6 in 10 (60%) admit their parents coddled them more than prepared them for the workplace.
- 2 in 5 (40%) say they earned less than they should have because they were never taught to negotiate.
- 4 in 5 (80%) are turning to AI and social media to learn basic workplace etiquette, including professional email writing.
These findings continue to raise concerns about workplace readiness, financial preparedness, and the long-term cost of a generation arriving at work without basic professional skills.
Gen Z’s Workplace Values
I was surprised to read that a study by NYU professor Suzy Welch of over 45,000 participants, including 7,500 Gen Zer’s, reveals a distinctive values gap between hiring managers and the youngest working generation. Welch’s analysis produced an outcome that startled her and her team: A mere 2% of Gen Z members hold the values that companies want most in new hires, which are achievement, learning, and an unbridled desire to work. Gen Z respondents’ top three values are:
- The desire for self-care and personal pleasure; to be happy.
- The desire to express authentic individuality; to have a voice.
- The desire to help people; to make a difference in others’ lives.
The first two address one’s internal values, which some might say are selfish, while the third is external oriented–the desire to help others. However, they fail to cover values such as responsibility, accountability, and integrity.
Workplace Motivation
Gary Drevitch writes in Psychology Today that “none of these top Gen Z values are bad, but values are choices, and right now, Gen Zer’s have chosen to push back on the traditional ‘work ethic’ and instead prefer a more ‘look out for number one’ mindset.”
Writing for The Workforce Lens’s Substack, Domonika Borna says that “Gen Z refuses to pour effort into work that gives nothing back. They seek growth, respect, and purpose—and step back when these are missing.” She observes that “Gen Z wants something older generations also wanted but rarely said out loud: work that feels worth the hours it takes from their lives. They want growth, space to breathe, people who treat them decently, and a role that gives them more than a paycheck at the end of the month. This is not because they are fragile or demanding, but because they saw what burnout did to Millennials, the generation before them, and decided they would rather not repeat the pattern.” Her conclusion is that “Gen Z is not primarily driven by salary. They are driven by career progression, development, relationships, and workplace flexibility.”
Employers need to rethink how they onboard, train, and communicate with new hires. Otherwise, high turnover rates among young workers are likely to continue. Gen Z are deeply involved in purpose-driven causes. Employers should do what they can to engage them in these issues.
Purpose-Driven Cultures
Psychological scientists He Lu Calvin Ong (Nanyang Technological University) and Senthu Jeyaraj examined the effects of work-life balance and work-life harmony styles on worker productivity. The researchers used measures of creativity as indicators of employee productivity and cognitive dissonance as a measure that employees were suffering from work-life stress. In other words, employees experience a mental discomfort when their beliefs, opinion or values are inconsistent with their actual behavior.
Hu points to three issues that Gen Z care about as follows.
- Work should prioritize their well-being, which is what Gen Zers want from their work experience.
- Gen Z want to feel passionate about their work, uphold their values, and reject what they see as the toxic work mentality.
- Companies should challenge the status quo, not because they don’t care, but they may see ways to make their workplaces better and more equitable.
Concluding Thoughts
It’s no easy task to draw conclusions from these different surveys. However, I list below some conclusions about the values of Gen Z and how it translates into workplace behavior. Gen Z,
- Respond better when they are involved in setting the strategy for achieving organizational goals.
- Seek involvement in the decision-making process and valued for their ideas.
- Desire to work for managers sensitive to their needs (i.e., work/life balance).
- Want to receive periodic reviews and learn what shortcomings they may have.
- Want to be paid fairly and been given an equal opportunity for advancement.
- Seek to work for a purpose-driven company that shares their views on the environment and sustainability.
- Care for things outside of work that affect their well-being and want these things built into the ethos of an organization.
I strongly believe the disconnect between the values of Gen Z and those of employers is due to the amount of time Gen Zer’s spend on social media. It’s not surprising that Millennials and Gen Zer’s have been criticized for similar behavior because they spend so much time online.
According to a survey by CivicScience, Gen Z adults are heavier users: 24% of Gen Z say they use it for 2-4 hours per day, and another 24% do so for 4+ hours per day (compared to 22% and 20% of Millennials). Conversely, Millennials are more likely to say they spend less than one hour (25%) and 1-2 hours (33%) on social media per day than Gen Z (22% and 29%).
Even though Gen Z and Millennials report differences in how much time they spend on social media per day, data suggest that how they perceive their social media consumption is the same. When asked if they consider themselves addicted to their digital devices, 61% of both Gen Z and Millennial social media users said they are addicted to their devices overall, and 39% said they are not.
Conclusion
Virtually all of the articles that I have read point to Gen Z being unprofessional, unorganized, and having poor communication skills as their top reasons for having to fire grads. Leaders say they have struggled with Gen Z’s tangible challenges, including being late to work and meetings often, not wearing office-appropriate clothing, and using language not appropriate for the workplace. These are unacceptable and Gen Zer’s should change their workplace habits and not expect the organization to conform their behavior to their own. Organizations, on the other hand, should pay more attention to the expectations of Gen Z from their work experience. Each generation bring different things to the table with regard to workplace expectations and organizations should take note and make the changes whenever possible, to gain the loyalty of Gen Z.
Blog posted on July 15, 2026, by Steven Mintz, Ph.D., professor emeritus from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo. Learn more about Steve’s activities on his website.