A recent Salary.com survey revealed that the least happy age group in the workforce was the Millennial Generation (those under 30). This dissatisfaction was attributed to low salaries and lesser job titles. While I believe this is true I think the dissatisfaction is not just with those things in general, but with what they represent: a shift in the balance of power.
A few years ago, every other article in the news about Millennials in the workforce seemed centered on how employers were going to have to adapt to Millennials or face major talent shortages. Suddenly, every employer seemed to be bending over backwards to accommodate the desires of their new recruits. Millennials were supposed to overwhelm employers through sheer numbers, re-shape the office, and command work/life concessions from their employers never before seen (employers would have to hire someone as Baby Boomers retired and Gen X didn't have the numbers to compensate on their own). If employers didn't do this well enough, employees would walk away and find a new job where they were "appreciated".
Funny how I haven't seen any of those articles lately.
What was once an inevitable and permanent shift in the way companies were going to recruit, hire and manage Millennials no longer seems so inevitable. In all the hoopla about the upcoming generation, we seemed to lose sight of the cyclical nature of employment and the economy. All that "power by numbers" stuff still requires a strong economy and a surplus of jobs, or else the "power" of a large generation just becomes more competition for fewer jobs.
Students currently looking for full-time work entered college with employment expectations based on a booming economy, but (as workers over 30 can attest) the balance of power in the working world has always gone in cycles. In a booming economy, everyone needs talent and the power is in the hands of the employee. Jobs are readily available so employers give up more money, more perks, and work hard to attract and retain the best talent. Of course, when the economy takes a turn for the worse, that balance of power shifts back to the employer. The most common "perk" in a recession is continued employment. Additional "rewards" might come in the form of doing all the work that an unlucky laid off co-worker used to do, for no additional pay.
Of course, these changes affect every generation in the workforce, but Millennials lack the experience to adjust their expectations. While Millennials grew up in a time where they probably saw their parents laid off in previous downturns, they have never seen a downturn in their own professional careers. As a result they likely never developed a good understanding of how your working life can change even if you keep your job.
Many Millenials also possess a well documented trait that may be contributing to their unhappiness more so than their coworkers: an aversion to "paying your dues". As a group they have been known for thinking nothing of abandoning a job after only a year (and sometimes much less) if they feel they aren't advancing at what they perceive to be the proper pace or that they aren't being given "interesting" work, both things that tend to increase in a recession. Job hopping is nice escape if you can do it, but at 9.5% unemployment (and rising) it isn't realistic on a broad scale. In other words, go ahead and leave but remember there are 20 people waiting in the lobby (and in the lobby of every other place you might want to go work), with just as much experience and education as you, willing to work under any terms the employer sets.
To make matters worse for younger workers, this isn't your typical recession. We have seen a number of jobs lost to the recession that may never return. This restructuring of the economy as we have known it may well lead to a much longer period of high unemployment numbers than in previous recessions. Add to that the fact that Baby Boomers just saw their bulging 401k vanish and are holding on to their jobs, and you get an even greater reduction in opportunities for younger workers.
In a down economy, students need to be prepared for a search that will be much more competitive. You will need to be better prepared and able to articulate why you are the best for the job. The search will take longer and you may end up being offered a job that has some elements you don't like. You may be offered less salary than your friends were offered when they graduated only a few years ago. You may need to look in a broader geographic area to find employment (not everyone can work in New York City or Boston). Once you do land a position, you may find that your job changes soon after (including more work, less pay/furlough days, or any other number of "bad" changes).
If you find yourself unhappy with your position it never hurts to keep an eye out for new opportunities. Even in a deep recession there are always some jobs available. However, even if you dislike your job you should use the opportunity to learn as much as you can, gain experience and prepare yourself for a leap when the economy improves.
The good news is that, eventually, the balance of power will always shift again.
