27-Year-Old Annoyed By Younger Co-Workers Who 'Act Like The Company Owes Them The World'
If you don't do the work, you can't be surprised when you're not compensated properly.
Prostock-studio | Shutterstock It's understandable to be irritated by your job, and feel like you're being underappreciated or even mistreated at times. We've likely all been there. However, if you're not actually doing the work you're being paid for or if you simply neglect to show up, you really don't have a right to be unhappy.
A 27-year-old man on Reddit shared his annoyance with his younger co-workers for this exact reason. In his post, he claimed their entitlement in the workplace was unwarranted considering they barely worked.
A 27-year-old employee is annoyed by his younger co-workers who 'act like the company owes them the world.'
The Redditor works at a call center and has developed good relationships with his co-workers, ages 19-23, saying they're all 'very good friends' outside of work. However, he feels they're entitled.
"I don’t know if it’s an age thing but they always whine whenever things don’t go their way," he wrote.
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The employee claimed his co-workers frequently complain about their hourly pay but hardly show up to work.
The man explained that employees are paid on an hourly basis, which means you are paid for the hours you are physically present and working. He detailed how many of his younger co-workers whom the Redditor is friends with make "no call no show" a common occurrence.
If you're thinking that his co-workers were annoyed because they were reprimanded for their unprofessional attendance, think again. According to the Redditor, their complaints center around the fact that their pay reflects the actual amount of work they do.
He explained that they "whine" about seeing deductions in their pay even though they're all well aware they are paid by the hour. "Like you caused those deductions yourselves???"
He went on to explain that when their supervisor calls them out for their poor attendance, which isn't often, they villainize her even though "she's just doing her job."
"For me, you can complain all you want as long as you’re an efficient employee and is providing good numbers," he wrote. "I don’t know where the entitlement is coming from and I’m just tired I have to hear about it every single day."
Younger generations labeled as lazy and not wanting to work is a tale as old as time.
A 54-year-old commenter said that every new generation that comes in doesn't want to work, but it takes time for maturity to set in. "Eventually everyone learns then by that time they complain about the next generation doing exactly what they did," they wrote.
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Others viewed this behavior as a growing trend that is directly correlated with gentle parenting.
"These kids were raised to think everything they do is golden and if something was just too hard, it's 'unfair,'" another commenter said. "Anyone that repeatedly does a no call/no show is lucky they still have a job."
However, in an opinion piece for the New York Post, Jordan McGillis, a Paulson Policy Analyst at the Manhattan Institute, argued the COVID-19 pandemic contributed to behavior that seems to be holding Gen Z back in the workforce.
Many colleges lowered their expectations for students, so much so that even the bare minimum requirements, like turning in assignments, became optional. "Restrictions placed on Gen Z during the pandemic, and concessions granted to it, amplified the human tendencies toward sloth and conflict avoidance," he wrote.
Now, many younger people entering the workforce expect their every need to be accommodated because that's how they got through their college experience, but employers may not be as willing to coddle those stepping into the real world for the first time.
You have to do your job if you want to be paid.
Regardless of whether or not this is a new attitude or one that's been repeated throughout the years, you're not going to be compensated properly if you don't do your job properly.
Like the original poster said, if you're doing your job to the best of your abilities then you have every right to complain about it. But falling short of your required amount of work and then being surprised when you receive your paycheck with deductions is the definition of entitlement.
Sahlah Syeda is a writer for YourTango who covers entertainment, news, and human interest topics.