Hundreds of thousands of missing skilled workers and a “Peter Pan generation”, of which almost a million prefer to lie idle. Germany is slipping further and further down the ranking of industrialized nations. What is happening here in the land of the once so hard-working people? ntv.de asks labor expert and author Susanne Nickel how bad things are at the location. She begins her book project “Spoiled, softened, hurt. How Generation Z is turning the world of work upside down and forcing us to act” with a lot of anger in her stomach. In the end she still has a conciliatory one solution. Your conclusion: In their hunt for young talent, many employers fail to value older employees – and in doing so cause a lot of problems for themselves and the German economy.
ntv.de: In your book you paint a bleak picture of the German labor market. The lack of work ethic among Generation Z gives you cause for concern. As a management consultant and coach, you have heard many, sometimes bizarre, stories. What’s happening here right now?
Susanne Nickel: The value of work has changed dramatically. The youngest generation on the labor market is voting with their feet because they know very well how important they are for Germany. And companies and managers bow to them. They throw lots of incentives or incentives like iPads and smartphones at them and are shamelessly exploited.
What does Generation Z vote with their feet?
Young people who can choose the cream of the crop think about which one to take. There are many vacancies, but young job seekers, with or without training, are in short supply. Again and again they find themselves in front of a new boss who says, “Hey, we need you, come to us. It’s really great with us.” You can afford to say: “I’d like to do this job, but it’s cold in the winter and I can’t work there.” This is what happened to a small plumbing company. The boss was completely shocked. If something doesn’t suit them and they’ve found something better, they move on.
Job ghosting falls into this category…
90 percent of employers in Germany have already had experience with this in 2021, 25 percent of them weekly! This means that more and more young people are abandoning the application process and disappearing like ghosts. The applicants either do not come to the interview, break off contact or do not show up on the first day of work. And the company starts all over again. Young people don’t worry about the costs. It’s understandable to continue searching, but it would make sense to let the company know.
What do we know about this Generation Z?
Susanne Nickel is a lawyer, business mediator and expert on work and change.
The so-called Z-learners are those born between 1995 and 2010. They are either trainees, studying or are at the end of their schooling. Their credo is: Live first, then work. Generation Z grew up in prosperity and is often excellently educated. They are social media natives, also the first generation to grow up with knowledge from the Internet. Their cell phone time is almost four hours a day and the trend is rising. Because they grew up in a fast-moving world, they demand immediate response and feedback. For them, everything revolves around their own personality and their own advancement. Some of their demands are also selfish. Companies must pursue economic goals in order to secure jobs and be sustainable. The demands of Generation Z cost a lot of time and money. That’s what makes it so threatening.
We are talking about almost twelve million young people who are neither trained specialists nor have many years of professional experience under their belt. There are three other established generations on the job market. Could it be that too much is being projected onto this generation?
You can’t blame all problems on Generation Z. But according to a study, almost 50 percent admit that they are not that efficient. There are 630,000 so-called NEETs. This is the abbreviation for “Not in Education, Employment or Training”. If a city as big as Düsseldorf doesn’t work, that’s worrying. If these young people, who are our future, reject achievement orientation and prosperity, that is problematic. Germany is lacking hundreds of thousands of skilled workers. Since boomers will soon all be retiring, it is important that young people help close this gap in the job market. So Generation Z is immensely important.
There have always been demarcations and protests from younger generations. Hippies didn’t want to increase the gross national product either. How is this Generation Z different from the previous ones?
They are children of affluence who grew up well fed. They were hippies or my generation, not Gen X. I come from a working-class family and wanted to be independent and build something for myself. In my generation it was all about achieving something and setting goals. If I grew up in wealth, I can easily reject wealth because I know it and find it normal.
However, surveys also show that two thirds of 16 to 25 year olds think it is likely that they will buy a house or apartment at some point. Where is the money supposed to come from if not through work?
Of course, this generation is not homogeneous in itself. A lot happens for young people in the years between the end of school and their late twenties. Some are still naive, others more realistic. But they also quickly come to the conclusion that the generational contract is not working and that things will not be as good for them as their parents in the future. There is a huge frustration behind their anti-attitude, because it is clear to this generation that it will be much more difficult for them to build something for themselves, perhaps to buy a property. So, why work then?
The economic situation is not rosy. The shortage of skilled workers cost Germany six billion euros in economic output in 2022 alone. What role do older employees play in this situation?
That is an important point. Companies pounce on young people because they say they are dynamic, flexible and perhaps don’t cost that much money. However, they are making a big mistake because Generation Z is very demanding, including financially. I say: Why don’t we focus on my generation, the X, those born between 1965 and 1980, with a total of 16.5 million people? The younger ones are only in their mid-40s and still have to work for over 20 years. Generation X is often well educated and many have also acquired a certain level of resilience. They coped significantly better during the corona pandemic than younger people. I always appeal to companies to also hire older people. You can deal with a boss who is difficult and don’t run away at the first critical feedback. But unfortunately they often fall through the cracks, and this applies to boomers anyway.
Why actually? Isn’t it much more effective to keep long-serving employees happy and give them benefits such as a four-day week and more vacation days? And isn’t that a much better incentive for young people to make an effort in a company?
In fact, many more such incentives are needed. I absolutely support the principle of flexible working hours. However, in my opinion, it doesn’t pay off to proceed according to the watering can principle. Older people should not only be allowed to work less, but also to develop further and take on leadership positions. Working time models based on life phases would be important. Do I have two children and need flexibility? Am I single and have more time or am I over 50 and looking after my mother or father? We have to be much more flexible here.
And why isn’t the obvious done?
Because there is no urgency. Young people vote with their feet because they have endless possibilities and can therefore exert a certain amount of power. Employers realize that they have to do something, otherwise they will neither be able to find nor retain young people. If the approximately 2.5 million young mothers who work part-time were to increase their weekly working hours by just one hour, this would correspond to the workforce of around 70,000 full-time positions. I’ve been saying for years, don’t have meetings at five in the afternoon when the mothers are no longer there. Do you think it was taken to heart? Changes are only addressed when it is urgent. Now Generation Z comes into play and says, “Hey, we want more flexibility, we’re not going to do it like that,” and suddenly they’re adapting to it. Generation Z has the power to impose demands that mothers never achieved.
You really let off a lot of steam in your book. Do you also have a solution? In your opinion, who should, who will ultimately fix it and prevent Germany from slipping further and further away?
We cannot do without any generation. Everyone has to pitch in. We need to get the baby boomers and young people, as well as all other generations, on board with a common direction. We cannot afford to wait another five or six years. Otherwise we will have a total fiasco.
There is a lot of discussion and argument about the four-day week. Would that make you want to work more?
I ask myself something completely different: Why necessarily work less? Why has work become “away from the goal” instead of “toward the goal”? Work can also bring joy. We therefore need managers who manage to build successful relationships and inspire and motivate employees.
In your book you repeatedly talk about the deficits in education. This makes Generation Z effeminate; they cannot endure defeat. At the same time, they demand that employers take even more care of these young adults. Pampering a spoiled generation even more? Is not that a contradiction?
In the beginning, I wanted to send an entire generation to a boot camp so that they could learn more discipline and perseverance. But the study situation, the increasing number of mental illnesses, and the origins and upbringing of young people mean that Generation Z also holds a mirror up to us. I don’t want to pamper her. It is important that all the prejudices and everything that is said about them come to the table: high standards, difficult behavior, weak psyche, low performance. Only then can we try to understand the background in order to find solutions. A team leader once called them the “Peter Pan generation.” Peter Pan never wanted to grow up. We have to help them grow into adult roles. Young people need to understand that if you put in the effort you will achieve something. I categorically reject the idea of just distributing iPads. I advise companies to be more authentic. Maybe not every candidate will fit in, but you won’t get the completely wrong ones either.
You have had almost all DAX companies as customers. Has much changed after your coaching?
There is still too little movement, but there is movement. That’s why Generation Z also has the chance to be a booster for cultural change. To a certain degree. In the best case scenario, everyone will benefit from this.
Diana Dittmer spoke to Susanne Nickel