Baby boomers not the only reason for slacking Gen Y'ers

Living in the information age, Gen Y’ers are much smarter, only a little too smart to work. I believe it’s the attitude that the Gen Y’ers carry. Being technically savvy, brought up mostly by single parents, fiercely independent, they want to get to the top of the ladder very soon and they know that they have better opportunities and options, so if they quit one job they get another. They are ‘Not Fighters’ (Chloe).If one considers today’s job market which is highly competitive, educational qualifications and experience are highly valued when it comes to skilled labour. So, those who are busy getting a full time higher education degree and those who are quitting because of more options are a large number who may be contributing to this decline in labour participation levels.

Today, 64% of women and 60% of men go to college after graduating high school and 85% attend full-time. (*Source: The Millennials: Americans Born 1977 to 1994; Bureau of the Census: Educational Attainment, 2002)Of course, illegal immigration cannot be denied as a reason. But this again comes to the point where American Gen Y’ers should see the need to become more competitive in the labor market to get entry and maintain their jobs which means they need to have work ethics ingrained in them. As Chloe pointed out, the social environment does matter and added to that, the media hotchpotch, marketing and entertainment is at its peak. With all of this around, Gen Y is bound to be lost. But, I do feel that a lot many of us, still, have a decent enough work ethic. There is no point blaming the Baby boomers for the Gen Y’s behavior. I believe the colleges and other educational institutions also equally bear the responsibility to provide work ethic education to Gen Y.