Dr. Rafael Chiuzi (left) is a an associate professor of organisational behaviour in the teaching stream at UTM, and he weighs in on why young professionals are losing interest in climbing the corporate ladder. (Courtesy: Canva)
Many young professionals today are opting out of promotions and are no longer desiring to climb the corporate ladder, in order to maintain a healthy work-life balance.
A 34-year-old man named Tony Zhang, took to social media to share that frankly, he is not interested in moving to a higher position after 10 years of being at his job, even if it means more income.
“No, I don’t want an extra $20,000 to have more work, more stress, and spend more time talking to higher ups that I have absolutely zero desire to talk to,” he said in the video.
Zhang further notes that the promotion loses more appeal when you factor in tax deductions. He explains that nearly 50 percent of the additional annual salary would be taken in taxes and so the financial gain fails to justify the increased responsibility that accompanies the title.
Many took to the comments to agree with Zhang, emphasizing that a work-life balance is priority.
One user stated, “We work in order to live our lives. Not live to sustain our work. If the job is draining then what life is there to enjoy!”
Another user stated that with more responsibility in the workplace comes with more of an unhealthy work environment.
“The higher you go the more toxic it gets,” the user wrote.
The psychological contract of the workplace
Dr. Rafael Chiuzi, an associate professor of organisational behaviour in the teaching stream at The University of Toronto Mississauga, spoke to The Brandon Gonez Show to discuss the changing mindset that young professionals are having towards career advancement.
Chiuzi shares that despite the narrative that young professionals today are lazy or uninterested when it comes to their career or working, his research shows the opposite.
He says that this is a natural response to the socioeconomic context, as the “psychological contract” between employers and employees has changed from how it used to be.
Companies can no longer promise financial stability to their workers, which is why many do not want to provide their expertise, talents and time staying at one place for years on years like past generations did.
“This has become a much more transactional work relationship as opposed to a relational work relationship like we had in the past, so it’s not odd at all to me when I see the younger generation saying, ‘you know what, I have no interest,’” Chiuzi said.
Rather than prioritizing promotions and staying loyal to the company, many are valuing work-life balance, seeking multiple income opportunities and are more willing to reject offers that don’t sound worth it.
”I think now some employers are coming to the realization that maybe we need to find different strategies that resonate with this younger workforce more than just trying to sell them the dream of climbing the corporate ladder, and having an important title and offering. Even the compensation is not working anymore,” he said.
“That doesn’t sound lazy to me”: A message to employers
Chiuzi suggests employers to start looking on the outside instead of on the inside, to see what they can offer to entice people to stay at a workplace for longer, instead of blaming it on the person not having that drive for success.
“You need to find what is it that this new generation is looking for. Instead of just hanging on to what you know, start doing some research. Start going more in-depth about what is it that’s happening,” said Chiuzi.
Many are looking for non-traditional ways to make money, such as leaving their corporate jobs to become content creators or entrepreneurs, or even prioritizing seeking meaningful work regardless of pay, if it means that joy comes from it.
“You actually see the number of volunteering hours in the younger workforce increasing compared to what we had in the past. That doesn’t sound lazy to me,” added Chiuzi.
