Gen Z and older workers working together, will there be clashes?

The workforce in many businesses today is getting younger and younger. The presence of both Gen Z and older workers in the same work environment creates many “generational conflict” situations.

Conflict is inevitable

Gen Z (Generation Z, is the young generation born from about 1997 to 2012; many people also think that Gen Z was born from 1995 to 2010). According to forecasts, by 2025, this group will account for nearly one-third of Vietnam's working-age population.

When asked whether working with young people of Gen Z often leads to disagreements and clashes, Ms. Tuyet Trinh (38 years old, Thu Duc City) immediately nodded and affirmed: "Conflict is obvious, even happening all the time."

Ms. Trinh said that in the modern working environment, the presence and contribution of young people is increasing. Even workers over 30 years old like Ms. Trinh have lower ranks than those born in 2000. Meeting and working together every day can easily cause conflicts and arguments for many different reasons.

“In fact, Gen Z and our older working generation are prone to arguments over small details. Personally, I feel that they are very talented, have many creative ideas, and are willing to devote time and effort to their work. However, Gen Z is also quite sensitive and vulnerable, while I am older and often give compliments and criticisms frankly. Therefore, sometimes the two sides do not get along, and feel pressured when the boss assigns them to work together,” Ms. Trinh shared.

On the Gen Z side, Ngoc Nhi (22 years old, Thu Duc City) expressed that working in an environment with many older people, she herself sometimes has many problems.

Ms. Nhi said that she once had a conflict with a colleague just because of “walking softly and speaking softly”. When she continuously received comments from her colleagues about eating and traveling, she felt uncomfortable and upset.

“At that time, I felt like I was being managed and supervised for things that went beyond the limits of my job. I explained a few sentences, but she misunderstood that I was not listening to her suggestions. Even the clothes I wore to work could become a controversial topic,” Nhi said.

Not only that, Ms. Nhi also experienced a conflict with an older colleague because they could not find a consensus on the product packaging design. Ms. Nhi wanted something youthful, dynamic, and innovative, while her colleague prioritized professionalism and minimalism. The clash between two generations can happen for any reason and will never end if the boss does not step in to mediate and propose a solution.

Is it difficult to get along with Gen Z?

Each generation has its own advantages and disadvantages. Although conflicts and disagreements in daily work are inevitable, they can still get along and cooperate if both sides listen and find a way forward.

Gen Z and older workers working together may have conflicts

Managing a group of employees with 70% of them being Gen Z, Mr. Quoc Anh (35 years old, Da Nang City) shared that in order to cooperate well with young people, he himself must be transparent about principles from the beginning.

“Gen Z is a hard-working, diligent generation, but I feel that they have very strong personalities. To be able to coordinate smoothly and limit conflicts between the two sides, first of all, I think young people must also have a good attitude, be humble, and be polite. I have met some talented Gen Z people but they behave disrespectfully towards older colleagues. As for older workers, they should also be open-minded and not be too concerned about age. Older people like me also need to acknowledge the abilities of young people, even stick around to learn from them,” Anh affirmed.

Connecting with many Gen Z friends, Ms. Minh Tuong (32 years old, Ho Chi Minh City), the manager of an English center, expressed her opinion that resolving generational conflicts in the company is the same as in the family. There are two factors that Ms. Tuong considers the most important: respect and listening.

“Respect each other’s personalities, strengths, weaknesses, lifestyles, opinions… Learn to listen to each other’s thoughts, opinions, ways of doing things… That is the way I apply to maintain good relationships with my young colleagues. Gen Z is a generation “attached” to many prejudices such as argumentative, demanding, poor pressure tolerance… But through contact, I see that this is only a very small part. Don’t “generalize” because that would be unfair to them,” said Ms. Tuong.

Anh Quan (24 years old, Quang Tri) also said that young people of Gen Z like him also really want to learn from their seniors about how to live and work. According to Mr. Quan, it is not difficult for two generations to get along with each other. In addition to both sides being open to listening and understanding each other, the boss's timely presence is also very important.

“A boss who is psychologically sensitive and good at human resource management will certainly sense when there is internal instability in the company. I believe that when faced with difficult conflicts, the boss will be the one to mediate and provide the best solution to the problem,” said Mr. Quan.

The era of “combination”

Discussing this issue, Mr. Le Minh An, the recruitment manager of New World Saigon Hotel, said that the working environment of this era is a combination of many generations. In a few years, young employees may still make up the majority in many companies and businesses.

“Nowadays, Gen Z is very good, they learn and develop constantly. If older people do not update trends and cultivate new skills, they will definitely fall behind. In every generation, talent must go hand in hand with morality. Young people sometimes have talent but do not have much life experience, so they should know how to listen to adults. The most important thing is not age but how to treat people. If your subordinates are older than you, you need to have ways to treat them respectfully and gently so that they will recognize you. Depending on each person's personality, you should correct them, but you should not be too rigid. Similarly, with older workers, you should be open and sincere, do not be too harsh, but slowly give more guidance if the young person makes mistakes,” Mr. An shared.

It is important to understand each other's psychology.

An employee at an insurance company said that in order for two generations to work together without conflict, it is important to understand each other's psychology.

Young people want freedom and to satisfy their passions. Sometimes, being young makes them think a bit “rebellious”. Older workers are afraid that they cannot keep up, have low productivity, are afraid that young people will surpass them and lose their jobs, or think “I have more experience so I know more”.

“Understanding the other person’s psychology is an important factor in building a harmonious relationship. Of course, you should not indulge their emotions or follow their opinions regardless. Right and wrong should be discussed clearly, especially during the working process so as not to affect the overall results of the group,” said the HR staff.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/gen-z-va-lao-dong-lon-tuoi-lam-chung-kieu-gi-cung-dung-do-185240622224754401.htm