According to Pew Research, Millennials now make up 35 percent of the U.S. labor force, making them the largest generation represented in U.S. workplaces.
Millennials are a critical and growing portion of the American economy, but they often get a bad rap when it comes to the workplace. You can’t log onto social media or read a business publication without seeing some sort of piece about how Millennials are demanding more office perks, are unwilling to conform with the business status quo or are changing their business environments for the worse. But this reputation may be undeserved, and actually represent something quite normal – a new normal.
As each generation enters the workforce, they tend to redefine the way business operates – and weather criticism for it. Boomers faced similar challenges when they joined the Greatest Generation in the workplace. Gen Xers still have a reputation for being too cynical. Generation Z is only now entering the workforce in large numbers, so their impact has yet to generate any defined stereotypes.
While Millennials aren’t the workplace pariahs some would suggest, they do have certain characteristics that need to be taken into consideration. In fact, according to a Gallup poll, only 29 percent of Millennials are engaged at work, and fewer than 40 percent are “thriving” in their current roles. This is leading to incredibly high turnover, with 60 percent of Millennials considering leaving their current employer and 21 percent changing jobs in the past year. The cost of Millennial-specific turnover to businesses? An alarming $30.5 billion annually.
In Businessolver’s third annual State of Workplace Empathy Study, we took a look at the state of the American workforce to better understand what drives employee engagement and retention across the generations. This year’s study shows that the key to recruitment, engagement and retention particularly among Millennials isn’t a decked-out break room or free food: It’s workplace empathy. In fact, more than 80 percent of Millennials surveyed say they would leave their current employer if the workplace became less empathetic, or if they were given a job with a more empathetic organization.
We know exhibiting empathy to Millennial employees is important, but what does it mean in practice? We believe there are four key ways specifically to use empathy to engage – and retain – Millennial employees:
This flies in the face of what we assume about Millennials, and it means that leaders need to offer various channels for communication and not rely exclusively on technology. Communicating in an empathetic way (i.e., through the channels and in the manner that the employee wants) can better engage employees in the conversation and make them feel truly heard in the workplace.
Ultimately, smart business leaders understand that the more things change, the more they stay the same. The generations and their preferences may evolve, but what doesn’t is the desire to be heard, understood and supported at work.
Millennials, like other age groups in the workplace, appreciate office perks. But beyond free lunches and spa days, they seek an employment experience that is supportive of their motivations and priorities. As Millennials have become the largest generational group in the U.S. workforce, it’s more important than ever to keep them engaged in their jobs.
Savvy employers are realizing the power of this generation and are working to retain them in their positions for longer. It turns out, using a little bit of empathetic communication and best practices – not avocado toast and time off, as those Internet memes might have you believe — might just be the key.
Dive into the 2019 State of Workplace Empathy Study and check out our results below.
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