What to know
- Gen Z has been known for participating in a “work smarter, not harder” mentality in the workplace.
- Some feel more pressure or alone in the workplace as a person of colour.
- Some Gen Zers work harder because finding a job in the city is difficult.
Gen Z’s culture of “work smarter, not harder” is viral online – but is that practice feasible for People of Colour (POC) or different sexualities?
@pierredalati You gotta work smarter not harder #student #school #productivity #fyp ♬ original sound – Pierre Dalati
Canada has reached a 14.3 per cent youth unemployment rate in April, with many aged from 15 to 24 struggling to find work.
The unemployment rate for racialized youth has reportedly been significantly higher than for non-racialized and non-Indigenous youth. Back in February, a StatCan report revealed that 23.2 per cent of Canadian Black youth were unemployed, compared to a 14.4 per cent overall youth unemployment rate in the same month.
As securing a role becomes harder, those who are employed are now feeling pressure to stay employed.
Now Toronto took to the streets to ask Gen Z, POC and LGBTQIA+ residents about their experience in the workplace amid this challenging job market.
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Gen Z and Queer-identifying Toronto resident Seb M. shared her struggle in finding a job in the city.
“The workforce right now for Gen Z is really hard. I’m actually struggling to get a job right now. I have had five, four jobs, and they’ve never lasted, because it’s all been temporary,” they told Now Toronto.
If they are able to get a job, they would work their hardest to stay in that role.
“I’m gonna take whatever post-secondary [education] I need, whatever community hours I need. If that will show somebody that I’m dedicated to work, then I will [do it] because I want to work,” Seb said.
As a Queer person, Seb said they haven’t had bad experiences in the workplace (which they believe might be due to their femme presence) or felt an increased pressure to perform better than their peers.
In contrast, Toronto resident Sally-Anne O. said she has felt more pressure in the workplace as a Black woman in the medical field.
“I’m a family doctor, so I do get a lot of Black female patients coming to see me for that reason, which is lovely, but I guess sometimes I almost feel a bit of pressure to meet their expectations because they might have faced prejudice from elsewhere,” she told Now Toronto.
Toronto resident Aashna A. doesn’t necessarily feel more pressure; rather, she feels her experiences in the workplace are different to those of her white colleagues.
“There have definitely been situations where you’re definitely the most different person in the room, or have had different life experiences than other people around you,” she said.
Though she doesn’t let the fact of being a POC dictate how she acts in the workplace, she says she does follow the “work smarter, not harder” rule.
“We don’t have to hustle our way and burn ourselves out in order to achieve productivity or do the work that needs to be done. There are definitely efficient ways of getting things done the way they need to be,” Aashna said.
“I don’t subscribe to the idea of just [being] logged on for more hours of the day to impress someone else. I think that perpetuates a very toxic work culture and environment.”
