I remember when the demographic interest in generation Y got seriously under way, about ten years ago. There is now a large literature, ranging from youth voices urging older folk to get out of the way to heavily-researched analysis, all the way through to junk pop psychology positing a series of archetypes for Gen Y and the surrounding generations.
And then there’s the constant hum of ‘why, O Y’ muttering in newspapers. Most of this seems to be constructed around conflict of generation story types, and inevitably circles around to why business finds it difficult to retain younger workers. You can assemble your checklist from here: younger workers resist committment to the business; they leave as soon as they ascend into positions of responsibility; they don’t plan their lives around long-term work, and so on. Today’s Age has just such a story, built around a speech from the chief executive of the Oaktree Foundation.
The theme that really stood out from the article was the need of younger workers to see that what they do has meaning. There is a serious and important critique of the way (big) businesses conduct themselves embedded here, and as usual the journalist has walked straight past it.
Generation Y has been out in the workforce for the better part of ten years now. This coincides with that time of life of starting to work out one’s ways of constructing meaning. Part of that is articulating what makes for a satisfying life.
Having said that, articulating what makes for a satisfying life is hardly unique to a particular generation. That issue has been in the air for a good twenty years or so now. It remains unresolved, basically because workplace law continues to be shaped to allow (big) businesses to hire and dismiss at will. It remains unresolved because internships are now such an integral part of how some larger businesses induct junior workers it would be very hard to legitimize the work by putting a salary to it because of the vampiric tendency of a lot of businesses in the way they relate to their youngest workers. If they can get the young blood for free, then that’s exactly what they will do.
What is unique about Generation Y is that they have grown up in a culture where external sources of meaning have been relativised, and the choice to opt out is the default. The follow-on for how meaning is made is that it is not dependent on external sources of validation and affirmation. However, to then say that young people are lacking in spirituality is to miss the very large amount of discernment and consideration that lies behind the decision-making processes that shape how young people live.
This is where I throw my hands in the air when the perennial lack-of-young-folks-at-church discussion comes up. One of the problems with this conversation is the vampiric tendency some older people can (unintentionally) display: the desire to have the energy of the young in order to sustain the institution and relationships the older people have enjoyed in a particular place, without allowing those young people to have a say in governance or to exercise a creative influence on the life of a parish. When a younger person is placed in a position of responsibility they have to contend with being characterised as the angel or the devil, seldom a reasonable combination of both.
Similarly, in business there is an expectation that workers will appropriate the meaning the business apportions to them. If you doubt this, just ask yourself why a lot of businesses put energy into executive retreats, management bonding sessions, and so on. Building the culture of a business allows it to articulate its values in a strong and transmissible way. The problem is that they way they relate to younger people is much like that of churches: the young person can come in to do an internship, but there's no guarantee that will grow into a relationship where the business takes the worker at their own estimation.
And this is the crux of work and church. Both ignore the real spirituality of young people, who desire meaning and influence. Both spend a lot of time talking about young people, but very little time talking seriously with young people. Both tend to end up playing stupid power, trust and authority games, much of which comes down to that endless human fascination with the having and dispensing of money. The net result is an erosion of spirituality and a loss of faith all round. For businesses and churches alike the result is the endemic inability to retain young people in the organisation, leading to difficulties in sustaining the activity in the longer term. Young people will test their social and moral legitimacy by issues such as climate change, social policy, and the Millennium Development Goals, for example.
These are not issue unique to Generation Y. They matter as much to Generation X, and thoughtful Baby Boomers.
The solution lies not with the younger people, but with older people in any position of power and responsibility remembering that every time they point the finger, three fingers point back at them.
