Why are Millennials Struggling so much in their Career?
Is it the older generation making it hard for us or is it that were not putting up with the same nonsense as our parents?
Millennials seem to get a bad rep from both Gen Z and Baby Boomers and every generation in between. We’re described as lazy and entitled and known for jumping from one company to another very quickly.
According to What to Become, 21% of millennial works switched jobs within the past year and Less than 30% of millennials are engaged in their work.
In my experience as a working millennial, I would describe my career quite tumultuous. I had a really great college experience and my future looked promising with the amount of internships I was getting and landing a full time job at a popular media company before graduation. I was commuting 2.5 hours each way to this job only to experience the harsh reality of corporate America. For my first seven months on the job, coworkers would not even speak to me. I had to discuss with my manager and his response was, “they just take time to open up.” As a Black woman, I was already experiencing being the only person of color on my team and there was only a handful of Black people in the company. I constantly felt like an outsider and my work place felt more cliquey than high school. Additionally, one of my coworkers bullied me the entire time and I had experienced blatant racism and stealing credit for my ideas. I didn’t get a promotion because I did not speak up enough in casual situations enough according to my manager. After putting up with this for almost three years, the company decided to lay me off after going to HR to address concerning comments about one of my managers. I had thought only older people really got laid off. I was 24 and the $50,000 I was making could not have been that much for this company. I had the harsh reality of understanding how politics work. Fast forward two years after landing my dream job at the time, I was laid off again due to a power move and I was a pawn in the politics game.
With five years graduating college, I was never given a promotion, no one invested in having me move up, I had no mentors and all I knew was getting laid off. If this was going to be my future why did I try so hard for internships and getting a degree? My experience unfortunately isn’t unique. Many of my friends have felt undervalued and got laid off. According to Pew Research Center, during the pandemic 35% of Americans between ages 18 and 29, and 30% of those between ages 30 and 49 say they, or someone in their household, has lost their job.
Despite contrary belief, we aren’t lazy. 73% of millennials put in more than 40 hour work weeks (What to Become). It’s not that we want to keep switching jobs but what are we suppose to do if we keep getting laid off and no one is investing in our future. The wealthy continue to to get wealthy and so many millennials can’t even imagine buying a home or even have a savings account.
44% of millennials would be more likely to increase their work engagement if their managers met with them regularly and 62% of millennials looking to switch jobs are considering a switch to freelancing (What to Become).
It’s possible that many millennials actually don’t want to switch jobs, but their companies aren’t giving them compelling reasons to stay. When millennials see what appears to be a better opportunity, they have every incentive to take it. While millennials can come across as wanting more and more, the reality is that they just want a job that feels worthwhile — and they will keep looking until they find it. — Gallup
If you want millennials to work for you, you need to adapt to the times. This generation no longer is accepting pennies for 40+ hour work weeks. We are not staying at companies who don’t see our value. And we are definitely not going to give a job 20 years of our life just to end up with a pink slip and no pension.
In this episode, the So-Called Oreos are discussing all things career for millennials! The conversation starts off with facts on millennials being most affected by the coronavirus pandemic, what millennials want from their jobs and how their generation differs from their parents. The three hosts talk about how their careers looked bright in college and how hitting the real world put their expectations in check. Kia and Janae open up about meeting at work, which was a toxic environment ending in settlement checks and layoffs. Sexism, racism, bullying, not relating to coworkers, being the only black person on your team, being underpaid and struggling to get promoted all make their way into the dialogue. The discussion ends with things the Oreos have learned so far in their career and what they hope and now consider for future employment.
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