The youngest generation of workers is not a fan of being forced back to the office.
According to a study by German HR technology company Personio, half of Gen Z said they would quit their jobs if they were forced to come into work more than three days a week. That’s compared to just 39% of the 2,000 employees of all age groups who said the same, the Daily Mail reported.
A similar number of Gen Z workers said going into the office was a “waste of their time and money,” according to the survey. The survey responses from workers are in line with what companies are seeing as well. Among 1,000 HR managers surveyed, more than half said employees have been reluctant to come back to the office full time since COVID restrictions ended.
Many young people entered the workforce either during the pandemic or in the years that followed when remote work was widely adopted by companies across industries, which may have accustomed them to a way of working that was not as commonplace in years prior.
Another factor fueling this demographic’s distaste for returning to the office full time is high inflation that has persisted for years and has increased the price of gas, buying a car, and eating in restaurants.
But despite what younger workers might want, companies are desperate to get them back where managers can see them. On Monday, Amazon was the latest large-cap company to enact a five-day return to office mandate. Companies across industries such as BlackRock, Chipotle, and Disney have all forced employees to come into the office more than three days a week.
More than 92% of workers aged 16 to 24 did not telework at all in August, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Only 3.2% worked a full-time job remotely, with the rest working a hybrid schedule.
Some tech savvy Gen Z workers are making the most of return-to-office mandates with social media videos glamorizing their workdays that have racked up hundreds of thousands of views. Making the mundane work day more captivating has led some workers to “yassify” their cubicles at the office with decorations reflecting their personalities.
Others, like marketing coordinator and social media work influencer Alicia Winterboer, are trying to break the stigma of working a 9-to-5 job with videos highlighting their routines. Winterboer told the Wall Street Journal that while many young people glamorize working for themselves, corporate America has its upsides too.
“It is OK to have that 9-to-5, and it is OK to have that routine,” Winterboer said.
