Focused on flexibility: What benefits really deliver for younger employees?

Are you older than your employees?  If you are a business owner, that is often the case. According to Experian, the average age of the U.S. small business owner is 50.3 years. Meanwhile, the median age of employees is 41.7. This might vary by industry, but if the term median means “half are below” it makes sense that there is an age gap between the business owner and their employees. What do these younger employees want?

You have often heard the “older generation” has different values. They eschew formality. Younger workers’ homes don’t need dining rooms because they prefer open plan living. They are more interested in experiences than in possessions.

There are those who believe younger people have a different set of values that their parents and grandparents. It has been said seniors and baby boomers believe in the “Have, Do, Be” culture. You may know this as “deferred gratification,” prioritizing saving money and sacrificing home life and enjoyment:

• If you have enough money
• To do what you want
• Then you will be

Gen X and Gen Y might be better described as members of the “Be, Do, Have” culture. You have heard the expression “Do what you like and the money will follow.” This is associated with immediate gratification, but also prioritizing family and personal life vs. making your job the focus of your life:

• Determine who you want to be
• Do things aligned with that outlook
• Then you will have

Are younger employees satisfied at work?

Younger employees are less satisfied with their jobs than older employees, according to the PEW Research Center. Their overall level of job satisfaction is 44%, however the two strongest areas of satisfaction are a relationship with their co-workers (65%) and a good relationship with their manager (62%). Their satisfaction with benefits offered by their employer almost matches job satisfaction at 42%. The two weakest categories are pay and promotion opportunities, ranked at 31%.

How about stress?  32% of younger employees feel they have stressful jobs compared to about 25% of employees aged 50 to 64. Stress goes down to 19% for those over 65.

What benefits appeal most to younger employees?

In this case, let us assume millennials and the subsets Gens X, Y (and Gen Z) are grouped together “younger employees.”  According to Forbes, work/life balance is very important to them. When contemplating a job, 80% are looking at how taking that job will affect their work/life balance. This can also be expressed as flexibility. The pandemic lockdown opened up the possibility of working remotely, which continues to have great appeal. Gallup reports employees working remotely 60% to 80% of the time had excellent productivity and engagement. Millennials also value the team structure, which includes feedback from team members.

The Forbes article recognizes about 50% of millennials have children. Circling back to work/life balance, they place a high value on employee benefits focused on family. This includes child care, paid parental leave and help paying for education. If they aren’t in the 50% with children, they are likely in the 70% with pets. Some firms offer pet insurance.