Millennial Manager Says There's Nothing Quite As 'Humbling' As Receiving Applications From Gen Z Job Seekers
She was shocked at the level of unprofessionalism that she saw from many of the Gen Z applicants.
Raushan_films | Shutterstock Gen Zers often face a slew of assumptions and negative stereotypes regarding how they are in the workplace. Many older employees even admit to alienating them during application reviews.
However, it seems that Gen Zers may not take job applications as seriously as they should, at least according to a millennial manager named Amy Gastman who was shocked at the kinds of things that she saw young people include in their applications.
The millennial manager said there's nothing as 'humbling' as receiving applications from Gen Z job seekers.
Gastman, a U.K.-based content creator and owner of a vegan bakery, Eat By Amy, posted a job opening for a baking assistant and barista. After her announcement, she received an influx of resumes and CVs, mostly from Gen Zers, and was flabbergasted at the low level of professionalism.
She claimed that she couldn't understand any of the choices made by Gen Z applicants. "For example, no capital letters anywhere," Gastman said. "Then I had another girl be like, 'I'm having a Brat summer.' What? I don't understand."
Most of the applications that Gastman received from Gen Zers were filled with jargon that is commonly used within their generation — including "Brat summer," which comes from singer Charli XCX's latest album "Brat." While the phrase may be well-known among the younger generation, Gatsman rightly pointed out that it had no place on a resume.
The manager admitted that while these applicants had 'good vibes' it wasn't the type of vibe she was looking for.
While she was hiring for a position at her bakery, and not a corporate company, there should still be a basic level of professionalism. Unfortunately, many of the Gen Z applicants didn't get the memo.
Going through more of the applications, they only seemed to get worse — and more amusing.
"23-year-old avid Harry Styles enthusiast with a superpower of being able to manage getting tickets to a sold-out concert (at face value!!!)," read one of the applications — though, even the singer's name wasn't capitalized.
Another included "LOL" and winky faces at the end of each sentence, while one Gen Z applicant admitted that they didn't know "how to bake" despite applying for a position at a bakery that would require them to do so.
"This is not the kind of thing I want when you're gonna send me CVs," Gastman insisted. "Like I need some level of professionalism. We don't know each other. I am gonna be using my money out of my business to pay you, so you kinda have to convince me that that is a good idea."
A large percentage of hiring managers tend to avoid hiring Gen Zers altogether because of their unprofessionalism.
Resume Genius, a website that provides job seekers with tools and resources to help build their careers, asked 625 U.S. hiring managers which generation is the most challenging to work with — 45% pointed to Gen Z. On top of that, 50% of Gen Z hiring managers admitted that their own generation is the most difficult to manage.
Hiring managers cited Gen Z candidates' lack of experience, unprofessional attitudes, and work ethic as reasons why.
Of course, this doesn't apply to every single individual within Gen Z, but many seem to lack the awareness of what's expected in a workplace setting. Some of that unawareness may be because a lot of Gen Zers graduated college during the height of the pandemic and were never able to learn the necessary skills that they needed. Now that the pandemic is mostly over, Gen Zers are struggling to assimilate into the work culture that many older generations are used to.
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On top of that, Gen Zers are unwilling to settle for something that doesn't serve them and won't hesitate to make it known if a workplace isn't up to their standards. They job-hop if they aren't happy with their salaries, and they demand certain stipulations before accepting a job. None of those are bad things, and frankly, it's refreshing to see a younger generation advocating for themselves.
However, while there are pros to Gen Zers entering the workforce, there are also some serious cons, as shown by Gastman. Job applications are an opportunity to show your personality, but there also needs to be a base level of professionalism and courtesy, at least if they want to get the job.
Nia Tipton is a Chicago-based entertainment, news, and lifestyle writer whose work delves into modern-day issues and experiences.