Deloitte, cost of living worries GenZ and Millennials and 1 out of 2 in economic difficulty
The high inflation of recent months also scares young people and it is, for Millennials and GenZ from all over the world, the number one concern of 2022. This was revealed by the latest edition of the ‘Deloitte Global GenZ and Millennial survey‘. According to the study, conducted on a sample of over 22,000 people in 44 countries around the world and on over 800 young people in Italy, concern for the cost of living stands out among all even in our country boys and girls are particularly worried due to the soaring cost of living.
Expectations and concerns of young people
“Like every year – he comments Fabio Pompei, CEO of Deloitte Italy -our Millennial survey gives us a very significant insight into the expectations and concerns of our young people. From the data it is clear that Millennials and GenZ have been hit hard by inflation triggered by pandemic and war. It is a phenomenon that does not only concern this segment of the population, but which particularly worries the youngest both in our country and in the rest of the world”.
“Even on the employment front – he explains – very significant trends are consolidating. Flexibility, mental health, attention to environmental and social impact are increasingly important for GenZ and Millennials looking for a job. Furthermore, many young people have questioned the hierarchy of values that give meaning to their lives: in Italy 7 out of 10 respondents say that family and friends are more important than a career. A fact that is reflected in the great importance attributed to work-life balance and hybrid work, now considered the new normal”.
Cost of living, climate change and unemployment: these are the big issues
Cost of living, climate change and unemployment: these are the major issues that concern GenZ and Millennials in our country today. In particular, the cost of living is the number one concern for almost half of the Millennials in Italy (46%) and for 38% of the GenZ surveyed. Very high values which confirm the trend of inflation at record levels all over the world: even for 42% of the global average of Millennials and for 35% of GenZ, the cost of living is the first concern. In second position, but no less relevant, remains the climate issue, which should be the priority to be addressed according to 37% of Italian Millennials and 34% of GenZ. The percentages of those who fear unemployment are also significant: 29% of GenZ and 26% of Italian Millennials. In addition to these three major issues, the interviewees also bring up the issues of ‘scarcity of resources’, ‘inequality and discrimination’, stagnation of ‘economic growth’ and increasing ‘social inequalities’.
In line with the global average, 50% of GenZ and 47% of Millennials live from paycheck to paycheck and fear not being able to make ends meet. In particular, Italian GenZs and Millennials show high levels of concern about the impact that economic stagnation is having on them, affecting their ability to start a family and buy a home.
If the economy doesn’t improve in the next year, then, 71% of Millennials and 63% of GenZ in our country think it will be very difficult or impossible to start a family (against 47% and 50% of the global average). Fears about the house are also significantly higher than the global average: 71% of GenZ and 73% of Millennials think it will be impossible to buy one in the next year if the economic scenario does not improve. To cope with economic instability, 37% of GenZ and 23% of Millennials in Italy have at least one second job with which they try to supplement their first source of income.
Work and sense of identity
In line with global results, friends and family are what give the most ‘sense of identity’ to GenZ and Italian Millennials. For 68% of GenZ and 71% of Millennials these two factors are more important than career, which, however, remains a fundamental element of identity for 49% of GenZ and 62% of Millennials. And while it is true that life outside work is very important for young people, it is not surprising that the majority of GenZ (80%) and Millennials (79%) would quit their jobs if forced to return to the office full time. Ask yourself about the ideal way of working, the most desired solution (27% Millennials and 24% GenZ) is full flexibilityor the possibility of independently establishing whether to work from home or remotely.
Given this desire, among those interviewed today, 12% of Millennials and 13% of GenZ work completely remotely, 19% of Millennials and 21% of GenZ have full freedom to decide where to work, 18% of Millennials and 23% of GenZ work both remotely and in the office according to rules set by their employer, 10% of Millennials and 12% of GenZ have returned to the office even though they could perform their job remotely, 41% of Millennials and 30% of GenZ do work that requires physical presence.
Italian GenZs and Millennials place great value on extra-work time and have fewer ‘disconnection problems’ than other generations. More than a third rarely or never check emails outside of working hours. The desire for disconnection of young people is accompanied by an increasingly strong attention to the issue of mental health: in Italy GenZ is less ‘stressed and anxious’ than the global average (44% Italian vs 46% global), while Millennials declare themselves more anxious and stressed than the global average (42% Italian vs 39% global).
Mental health is increasingly important
Concerns about one’s economic future and the well-being of one’s family weigh above all on the state of mental health: 45% of GenZ and 47% of Millennials in the first case are concerned, 38% of GenZ and 41% of Millennials in Italy in the second. To ensure a better work-life balance, 38% of Millennials and 39% of GenZ would like a 4-day working week while 32% of Millennials and 28% of GenZ insist on the importance of guaranteeing the possibility of working remotely. In general, 73% of GenZ and 78% of Millennials in Italy say that the topic of mental health is relevant when considering a new employer.
Overshadowed by inflation, concern for the state of health of the planet nonetheless remains one of the main sources of anxiety for the younger generation. A phenomenon that in Italy reaches very significant levels: among the Italian GenZ, 63% (against 60% of the global average) declares to have been worried or anxious about the climate in the last month. A similar level is recorded among Millennials: 64% of Italians, against 57% of the global average, are concerned about climate change in the last month.
To contribute to the environmental sustainability, among Italian boys and girls the most common behaviors are: avoid fast fashion clothing (35% GenZ and 33% Millennials); check the sustainability of the products purchased (25% GenZ and 21% Millennials); make your home more sustainable (29% GenZ and 26% Millennials); adopt a vegan/vegetarian diet (17% GenZ and 19% Millennial).
Source-www.adnkronos.com