{"id":75458,"date":"2025-05-01T10:18:58","date_gmt":"2025-05-01T08:18:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/visualjournalism.de\/?post_type=magazin&p=75458"},"modified":"2026-10-09T11:54:07","modified_gmt":"2026-10-09T09:54:07","slug":"gen-z-and-work","status":"publish","type":"magazin","link":"https:\/\/visualjournalism.de\/en\/magazine\/work\/gen-z-and-work\/","title":{"rendered":"Gen Z and work: is the \u2018lazy generation\u2019 just a stereotype?"},"content":{"rendered":"\r\n
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\n\tWork<\/a><\/div>\r\n

\r\n Gen Z and work: is the \u2018lazy generation\u2019 just a stereotype? <\/h2>\r\n\r\n
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Lazy, spoilt, demanding? Gen Z is fighting for its reputation \u2013 and it\u2019s their work ethic above all that\u2019s being called into question. Is there anything to the stereotypes?
\nBy Jule M\u00fcller<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n <\/div>\r\n \r\n

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\r\n \"\"\r\n\r\n <\/figure>\r\n\r\n \r\n \r\n<\/div>\r\n\r\n\n\n\n

Photo: Janek Stempel, Emil Eichinger<\/sub><\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Anyone born between 1995 and 2010<\/strong> belongs, by definition, to Generation Z, or Gen Z for short \u2013 and these days they\u2019re accused of a great deal. They are said to be unwilling to work, spoilt, unable to cope with pressure and to expect too much of their employers. The former CDU member of the Bundestag Thomas de Maizi\u00e8re shares this view. In an interview with \u2018Die Zeit\u2019, he said the sense of entitlement among many in Generation Z rubs him up the wrong way. But what is actually behind all these accusations, where do they come from \u2013 and is there anything to them at all?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Martin Schr\u00f6der, professor of sociology at Saarland University, has looked into exactly these questions. In an interview with the RedaktionsNetzwerk Deutschland (RND), Schr\u00f6der admits that he too was initially convinced that Gen Z didn\u2019t want to work. After all, he saw a lack of motivation among the students in his seminars all the time. He set out to prove scientifically what everyone supposedly already knew, using more than 600,000 survey responses from people in over 100 countries. But the result was not what the professor had expected \u2013 he found virtually no differences between the generations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Young people today<\/strong> are actually more active in the labour market than in previous decades.<\/p>\n <\/blockquote>\r\n\r\n

\r\n\r\n \"\"\r\n Institute for Employment Research<\/span>\r\n <\/figcaption>\r\n \r\n <\/figure>\r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n\n\n\n

A study by the Institute for Employment Research (IAB)<\/a> shows that Gen Z does not lack motivation to work. The employment rate among 20- to 24-year-olds is as high as it was in the mid-1990s. After falling steadily from 1995 to 2015, Gen Z managed to halt the downward trend. Between 2015 and 2023, the employment rate rose significantly again for the first time, by 6.2 percentage points. Compared with the rate among 25- to 64-year-olds, which rose by only 2.8 percentage points over the same period, the increase among 20- to 24-year-olds is above average. The IAB\u2019s conclusion is clear: young people today are actually more active in the labour market than in previous decades.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This trend is mainly due to a growing share of students with part-time jobs. Between 2015 and 2023, the employment rate among students aged 20 to 24 rose by a good 19 percentage points to 56 per cent, and among non-students by just under two percentage points to almost 86 per cent. Shorter degree courses are another explanation. The Bologna reform of 2002 introduced a more flexible system that allows graduates to enter the labour market earlier, after a bachelor\u2019s degree. This contributes significantly to the rise in employment, as many students take up work during or straight after their bachelor\u2019s.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So why is Generation Z<\/strong> still branded as work-shy? In his interview with the RND, the sociologist Schr\u00f6der explains how the assumption comes about. The observation that young people are less keen on work than older people is initially correct, he says. It\u2019s just not a generational effect. Young people have always been less motivated to work \u2013 and all of us are less motivated today than we used to be.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The youth of today<\/strong> love luxury, have bad manners and contempt for authority. They contradict their parents, cross their legs and tyrannise their teachers.<\/p>\n <\/blockquote>\r\n\r\n

\r\n\r\n \"\"\r\n Socrates<\/span>\r\n <\/figcaption>\r\n \r\n <\/figure>\r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n\n\n\n

Even 2,400 years ago there was a stereotype that young people love luxury, have bad manners and despise authority \u2013 the quote is attributed to Socrates, who lived from 469 to 399 BC. Likewise, Generation X, born between 1965 and 1980, was labelled \u2018slackers\u2019 by the media and pop culture: a lethargic, can\u2019t-be-bothered generation supposedly lacking ambition. In the early 2000s, Generation X\u2019s image changed: now it was widely seen as entrepreneurial and productive at work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to Schr\u00f6der, there is a second reason for the accusations against Generation Z. \u2018People just like to discriminate. We like to divide others into groups \u2013 preferably in such a way that we belong to the better group, the hard-working boomers, for example,\u2019 the sociologist says. Conversely, it\u2019s just as problematic to lump people together as \u2018boomers\u2019 and reduce all their behaviour to boomer stereotypes. This phenomenon of generationism sits alongside sexism and racism. Here, people categorise others not by gender or skin colour but by year of birth. It allows us to see our own group as better than others, which gives us a satisfying feeling. But that is sometimes immoral and often even illegal, says Schr\u00f6der.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At work<\/a>, Generation Z<\/strong> places particular value on flexibility, appreciation, good leadership and health promotion. That\u2019s what the \u2018Trend Study 2025\u2019 by the Institute for Generational Research<\/a> in Augsburg shows. According to the survey, younger employees in particular want more flexible working hours and the option of working from home. Around 80 per cent of Generation Z would like to organise their own working hours flexibly \u2013 on a par with Generation Y, but well ahead of the baby boomers (60 per cent). Gen Z\u2019s interest in workplace health promotion is high: 35 per cent call for such measures, compared with only around 7 per cent of baby boomers. The offers mentioned include mental health support and sick days for period pain. The younger generation is also reassessing leadership. Around a third of Gen Z want better leadership in their companies \u2013 including delegating responsibility and treating staff with appreciation. In Generation Y, only around 15 per cent expressed this wish. There\u2019s another clear difference when it comes to the four-day week: 28 per cent of Gen Z are in favour, compared with only around 7 per cent of baby boomers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Beyond these figures, the study shows that younger people identify less strongly overall with their employer or their professional role. Trainees and apprentices also feel less attached to their occupation than older employees. Study director Hartwin Maas explains that employees will want even more flexibility in future, so that work can adapt better to their individual circumstances<\/a> \u2013 especially women. The findings show that Gen Z is calling for a modern world of work<\/a> in which not only efficiency matters, but also humanity, adaptability and respect.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Young, committed, underestimated<\/h2>\n\n \n <\/div>\n\n \n\n\n\n\n
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Paula S. doesn\u2019t fit the picture either<\/strong> that older generations, such as the baby boomers, have of Generation Z. Paula was born in 2003 \u2013 so she belongs to exactly the generation that is supposed to be work-shy and spoilt. But one look at her life shows that these labels don\u2019t apply to her. In 2023, the then 19-year-old passes her Abitur. Two days after the leavers\u2019 ball, she starts training as a paramedic for a voluntary social year with the German Red Cross. So the fresh school-leaver doesn\u2019t have much time for holidays and leisure. During her time with the ambulance service, Paula doesn\u2019t shirk her work. \u2018I did day shifts, night shifts and 24-hour shifts and took on all the tasks. So I worked just as hard as the full-time staff there,\u2019 she says. When she isn\u2019t on shift, the young paramedic also works in a fruit farmer\u2019s caf\u00e9.
<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A year after her Abitur, the now 21-year-old finishes her voluntary social year with the German Red Cross. She then begins a degree in occupational therapy alongside vocational training. But despite her training during the week and her studies at the weekend, she doesn\u2019t give up the ambulance service. Even if that means that on some days Paula goes straight from vocational college to a (night) shift. She says the ambulance service is like a second family; in one year she has come to love the station and made lots of friends.<\/p>\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n\n

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\n \"Paula\n \n Photo: Jule M\u00fcller<\/span>\n <\/div>\n\n \n <\/figure>\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n
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Related to this story<\/h2>\n\n \n <\/div>\n\n \n\n\n\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
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\r\n\r\n Work<\/span>\r\n

\r\n New Work: the philosopher who emptied the offices <\/h3>\r\n\r\n
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New Work didn\u2019t start with the pandemic but with the radical vision of a thinker in the 1980s. His ideas are more relevant today than ever.<\/p>\r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n\r\n \r\n

\r\n \"A\r\n <\/figure>\r\n\r\n \r\n \r\n <\/a>\r\n\r\n <\/article>\r\n\r\n \r\n
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\r\n\r\n Award winners<\/span>\r\n

\r\n Youth in Lockdown. <\/h3>\r\n\r\n
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In the project “Between the Years”, student Valentin Goppel deals with the effects of the pandemic on his generation.<\/p>\r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n\r\n \r\n

\r\n \"\"\r\n\r\n <\/figure>\r\n\r\n \r\n \r\n <\/a>\r\n\r\n <\/article>\r\n\r\n \r\n
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\r\n\r\n Advice<\/span>\r\n

\r\n Losing motivation in a creative job: how to get your enthusiasm for work back. <\/h3>\r\n\r\n
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Even people who turn their passion into a profession know what it is like to lose motivation. We show you why joy can turn into a chore \u2013 and the concrete steps that will help you win back your enthusiasm.<\/p>\r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n\r\n \r\n

\r\n \"\"\r\n\r\n <\/figure>\r\n\r\n \r\n \r\n <\/a>\r\n\r\n <\/article>\r\n\r\n \r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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Recommended by the editors<\/h2>\n\n \n <\/div>\n\n \n\n\n\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
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\r\n\r\n Traces<\/span>\r\n

\r\n \u2018The wolf is a problem that can be solved\u2019 <\/h3>\r\n\r\n
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Protect or shoot? How farmers and conservationists are struggling over the right way to deal with the returning predator.<\/p>\r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n\r\n \r\n

\r\n \"\"\r\n\r\n <\/figure>\r\n\r\n \r\n \r\n <\/a>\r\n\r\n <\/article>\r\n\r\n \r\n
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\r\n\r\n Masculinity<\/span>\r\n

\r\n Old boys, old conflicts? <\/h3>\r\n\r\n
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Every year, the Coburger Convent draws thousands of fraternity members to Coburg. While some celebrate tradition, others criticise its all-male structures, its torchlight processions and the way it deals with its own history.<\/p>\r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n\r\n \r\n

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\r\n Hannover? Go and study somewhere else. <\/h3>\r\n\r\n
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That\u2019s what our author thought, too. Until he moved there. Why the city is worth it once you stop comparing it with Berlin or Munich.<\/p>\r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n\r\n \r\n

\r\n \"\"\r\n\r\n <\/figure>\r\n\r\n \r\n \r\n <\/a>\r\n\r\n <\/article>\r\n\r\n \r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n\n\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
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\r\n\r\n Ideals<\/span>\r\n

\r\n Success without studying? <\/h3>\r\n\r\n
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What an upbringing without authority is like.<\/p>\r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n\r\n \r\n

\r\n \"\"\r\n\r\n <\/figure>\r\n\r\n \r\n \r\n <\/a>\r\n\r\n <\/article>\r\n\r\n \r\n
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\r\n\r\n Ideals<\/span>\r\n

\r\n Utopia versus state power. <\/h3>\r\n\r\n
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Student Tim Wagner accompanies the clearing of the Dannenr\u00f6der Forest.<\/p>\r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n\r\n \r\n

\r\n \"\"\r\n\r\n <\/figure>\r\n\r\n \r\n \r\n <\/a>\r\n\r\n <\/article>\r\n\r\n \r\n
\r\n\r\n \r\n\r\n
\r\n\r\n What holds us together<\/span>\r\n

\r\n All sweetness and light in the Ore Mountains? When staying put becomes resistance <\/h3>\r\n\r\n
\r\n

Altenberg in Saxony looks idyllic \u2013 until you look more closely. A portrait of a young man standing up to the rise of the far right.<\/p>\r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n\r\n \r\n

\r\n \"\"\r\n\r\n <\/figure>\r\n\r\n \r\n \r\n <\/a>\r\n\r\n <\/article>\r\n\r\n \r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n\n\n\n
\n TO THE MAGAZINE HOMEPAGE<\/a>\n <\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"author":105,"featured_media":52622,"template":"","tags":[382,398],"magazinkategorie":[378],"class_list":["post-75458","magazin","type-magazin","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-arbeit-beruf-en","tag-youth","magazinkategorie-work"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nIs Gen Z lazy \u2013 or is that just a stereotype?<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Lazy, spoilt, demanding? 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