You know that story about how Generation Z doesn't want to work and that's why there's a shortage of employees in supermarkets, construction and many other areas? Well, here in Brazil, they keep talking about it. They're even trying to pass a law that reduces mandatory weekly hours without lowering employees' salaries.
So, since I'm being bombarded with this news about Generation Z, I'd like to share with you another milestone in history, because up until now, we've worked hard, but we've also put up with a lot of idiot bosses along the way who don't treat their employees with dignity..
(Image credit at the end of the text)
"Generation Z is weak, they don't want to work, they don't care about anything!" Many people repeat this as if it were the absolute truth, but the truth is quite different. The problem is not that today's young people are lazy, but that the world has changed. However, many people still think as if it were the 90s.
In the past, most people didn't have many options other than accepting whatever job came their way, or, as usual, continuing their father's profession. If the salary was bad, if the boss yelled at them, if the conditions were terrible, patience, necessity and even the shame of losing their job spoke louder and people forced themselves to continue.
People used to work in a traditional way because that was what they had. But today, with the internet, everything has changed.
Today, a young person can pick up a cell phone and discover how to make money in dozens of different ways. He can sell things online, create content, work as a freelancer, deliver snacks by bike in big cities through Ifood (there are a lot of these here), not to mention the opportunities in the world of cryptocurrencies, sites like publish0x where we earn crypto for writing texts, the opportunities are increasingly greater and more diverse. If a person realizes that he can earn some money with this, even if it is little at first, he thinks: "is it worth spending all day working hard to earn little and be undervalued?"
Another aspect of Generation Z is that they have access to information that previous generations did not have, right in the palm of their hand. If a boss tries to deceive an employee in any way, exploiting them or overworking them, or even failing to pay them labor rights, or paying them less than the minimum wage (here in Brazil, labor rights are a very strong part of society's culture, and employers know that when they hire an employee they will face some bureaucracy), they just have to search on Google and find out their rights. Before, many people worked in poor conditions because they didn't even know they had another option. Now young people know and won't accept anything.
Another important factor is that families have changed. Before, it was common to have many children, and the need for money made everyone have to work earlier. Today, families have fewer children and can invest more time in education and knowledge to be increasingly capable of not depending on exploitative jobs with idiotic bosses.
The truth is that today's young people have more time to choose what they want to do before accepting the first job that comes along. Of course, not every young person from Generation Z is getting rich on the internet, but the fact is that there are now more ways to make money. If the job market doesn't want to be left without employees in the future, it will have to adapt, offering better salaries, more dignified working conditions and respect for employees.
The problem is not that Generation Z doesn't want to work, the problem is that companies think that young people have to accept anything just because previous generations did, those who today take prescription drugs or end up drinking alcohol to forget or endure hard work.
Generation Z is sending a message to the entire market: "the game is changing."
