Working hard to look busy: Why Gen Z employees are ‘task masking’
Young workers’ particular twist on slacking could signal an insecurity about their job.
Sign up now: Get tips on how to grow your career and money
Perhaps the next time you notice your younger colleague swept up in a flurry of furious typing, reassure them their contribution is valued.
ST PHOTO: KUA CHEE SIONG
Srinidhi Balakrishnan
You stride across the office, laptop in hand, heading to the first of many meetings you have lined up for the day. Back at your desk, piled with print-outs, company pens and empty Huel bottles, you hunch over your screen, keyboard clattering. A scowl breaks into a loud sigh.
Such behaviour may resemble that of a junior analyst hard-pressed to meet a deadline. According to social media, however, these are also the hallmarks of Gen Z’s latest coping mechanism: task masking, or acting like they are working hard, while hardly working at all.
