Boss responds to Gen Z employee's request to leave work early after finishing all of her work for the day
If you’re sick of hunting down ad-hoc tasks after finishing your work early then you may just want to take a leaf out of one Aussie employee’s book.
You all know by now that the differences between the millennial and Gen Z workforce are stark.
Research from the recruitment site Adecco claims 34 percent of millennials value security while the younger generation is more interested in landing their dream career (32 percent) than grinding out the hours in a dead-end job.
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According to a ResumeBuilder.com survey, it has led over 70 percent of bosses to claim Gen Z is more difficult to work with than their older counterparts.
This is due to their lack of ‘effort, motivation and productivity’, according to the research.
But one woman who encourages those born between 1997 and 2012 to play to their strengths is Jessy Marshall.
The 35-year-old runs Hive HQ, a boutique public relations firm based in Sydney.
The group usually works with clients cemented in beauty, fashion and lifestyle circles has previously worked on activations with the likes of Naked Sundays and Vestirsi.
Marshall’s staff is made up of six Generation Z employees who she claims are up-front about their workload.
“They are much better at saying they feel pushed or exhausted or they don’t feel like themselves and need to take time out,” the businesswoman told the Australian site news.com.au.
“They are good at setting boundaries but they are also very good at making sure they work in their allocated time.”
The young mum also understands her Gen Z staff want to work smarter, not harder.
That’s why on Fridays she allows her team to log off early so they can revel in an extra-long weekend.
“They are really proud of what they are doing and I’m giving them time to rejuvenate,” the self-confessed ‘workaholic’ reasoned.
“If an urgent email came through, they’d still reply because they’d know it was important, but can it wait? Then it can wait until Monday.
“There also isn’t really an off switch with our work.
“We work in social media and media, and there’s always after-hour events, or sometimes a campaign might be launching between 7 p.m. and 9 p.m.,” she explained.
But what would the PR boss say to an employee who asked to finish work early on a day that wasn’t a Friday?
Not for a doctor’s appointment or because they were feeling ill - just because they’d finished their workload.
Well, Marshall has supplied a text message with the Down Under publication of that exact scenario.
“Hey Jessy! I am up to date with all my work,” wrote one of her trusted employees. “Anyway can I log off? Mwah xx”
The woman issued a three-word response to the person who wanted to pack up for the day before the final bell.
“Yes! Log off,” she typed back.
While we may not all be blessed with bosses like Marshall it’s probably worth a go at least once, right? What’s the worst that could happen?
Topics: Australia, Mental Health
Ella Scott