Gen Z, it’s not good to have your boss hate you

Every generation faces a sceptical reception in the labour force. Baby boomers were called self-centred, Gen X was lazy and millennials were considered entitled. For Gen Z, it is the same – but different. When I was at the

World Economic Forum

in Davos, Switzerland, last week, there was the normal buzz about economic conditions and climate change. But everyone I spoke with wanted to talk about something else: How the pandemic has changed the labour market, and especially how it has affected Gen Z.

Young people have never entered the labour force with more power – unemployment is low and the demand for labour is high – and they are exercising that power by changing workplace norms. The good times may not last, though, and Gen Z could wind up being the ones who pay the bigger price.