Millennials: Fact or Fiction

I often hear people complain about the turnover rate of Millennials. It seems like this is often attributed to them being disloyal, self-centered, entitled, and lazy. As someone who is considered a Millennial, I find these generalization to be offensive. It might be true that now-a-days young people leave companies more frequently than their older colleagues do, but I do not know if that can be attributed to a generational quality. However, due to these perceptions many articles have been written on how to recruit and retain Millennials, and some companies have changed their business practices to help with this.

I think it is great that some companies are focusing on creating a better work environment, but employee satisfaction is an important consideration regardless of your employees’ generation. Many people seem to believe that certain generations are more responsive to particular practices, but I believe that is a bit simplistic and shortsighted. Additionally, focusing on making changes for the generation rather than the employees you have, has the potential to ignore a large number of your staff.

So what is the problem with lumping all Millennials together? It is the same problem lumping any generation together; generations span 20 years (plus or minus a couple of years)! We are shaped by the world we grow up in and that world changes substantially throughout a generation. In the last 10 years, our phones have turned into computers, we have easy access to high-speed internet, social networking keeps us connected, and we can watch just about any television show we want instantly. I am only 30 years old and I did not even see a cellphone until I was 16. I remember having dial-up internet and social networking was mostly nonexistent, yet I am a member of a generation that contains people that grew up with iPhones.

If you look at the data from the Bureau of Labor and Statistics (BLS) on the median years of tenure from 2006-2016 (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2016), the numbers are fairly consistent throughout the decade for each age group. For example, employees 25 to 34 years old tenure did not change for men and decreased 7% for women, while the most tenured group (65 years and over) increased by 22% for men and 9% for women. Moreover, the data shows that as employees get older they tend to stay with a company longer.

At this point you may be saying, “see Millennials do hop from one job to the next!” However, the truth is it has nothing do with the generation; rather it has to do with the age range. The BLS data from 1983-1998 shows the average tenure of employees between 25 to 34 years old was 3.04 years for men and 2.66 years for women (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 1998). In fact, in 1983 the tenure of this age group for men and women was 3.2 years and 2.8 years respectively, which is just slightly higher than today. That means that “Baby Boomers,” the group that is often revered as one of the hardest working generations, changed jobs almost as frequently as “Millennials.”

With that data in mind it seems reasonable that employers have a difficult time retaining young employees. In the 25 to 34 years old range, employees are just starting out in their careers and are immersed in the adult experience. They are getting married, moving out of their parents’ house, and finding their passion in life. It is likely that life circumstances cause the lower tenure, not their laziness or feelings of entitlement. As employees age they tend to get set in a career path, even if they are not happy, making it less likely for them to leave. Moreover, the data seems to suggest that as people get within 10 years of retirement they are less likely to leave their company. This makes sense because, even if they are not happy, they are not willing to risk starting over at a company when they are so close to retirement.

So what is the point? The point is we need to stop assuming our employees have a particular set of attributes simply because they belong to an arbitrary generation. We need to take a more holistic approach when dealing with employee satisfaction and stop pandering to “Millennials.” Generations mean nothing; we need to focus on the people in our company. Stop ignoring older employees and work on creating policies that address the concerns of your entire staff.

I admit that this is a much harder task then trying to tailor a company to fit what you think an entire generation wants/needs. You have to work at it! You have to get to know your employees and implement changes as needed. A great way to do this can be well-constructed climate surveys, but if you do not take action on the trends you find, you have wasted everyone’s time. Additionally, company leaders should get to know their employees, work on creating goals together, and then put them in positions that help them achieve those goals.

Organizations need to stop making generalization regarding their employees. Reading every article ever written about appealing to “Millennials” is not going to help you retain them; there is no quick fix. If a company truly cares about increasing employee satisfaction in order to reduce turnover, which they should, they must be willing to put in the work. Since 1983, employers have had difficulty retaining the younger employees; maybe it is time for employers to realize they have been focusing on the wrong thing.