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Talkin’ about a revolution
Young professionals all over the world are jobless, not necessarily due to a lack of opportunities, but through burnout and a refusal to work. It’s an alarming trend that could reverse economic gains and adversely affect workplace behaviors for years to come.
Young workers in China proudly call themselves “rat people” — spending listless days in bed, tinkering with their phones, and ordering takeout. It’s a by-product of the “lying flat” movement that started in 2021. New-age workers have been protesting against China’s breakneck economic growth, which has resulted in sky-high living standards and a critical imbalance between work and life. Devoting oneself to a day job is regarded as a superfluous attitude tied to old-fashioned beliefs.
Experts have likened it to 1960s countercultural movements where younger people refused to succumb to relentless societal pressures to climb the corporate ladder and instead focused on personal development. Today’s rebels prefer a slower life. They shun the rapid rhythms of corporate work and prefer the reclusive routine of a sewer-dwelling rat.
Lack of ‘purpose’
The movement extends beyond Chinese borders. Young professionals in Europe and America are opting to spend their physical primes in bed. Gen Z gets a lot of flak for being easily offended and struggling to handle stress at work. Older employees regard them as lazy, uncooperative, and therefore unfit to work.
Such criticisms are warranted, but the young ones’ concerns cannot be outrightly ignored. Fresh off university, they enter the workforce with a zest for life. Their bodies are oozing with energy, their minds are rife with new ideas to transform the old system.
But in this quest for “purpose-driven” work, they soon realize there are mountains of administrative work to be done. A concerning 18% of employees said they devote just an hour to their core responsibilities. Additionally, a whopping 76% said they spend 1-3 hours on data entry, while 73% of workers spend the same amount of time just trying to find information or a particular document.
The new order
While administrative work is an inherent part of an employee’s daily routine, times have radically changed. Artificial intelligence (AI) and automation continue to make great advancements in alleviating workloads. Outsourcing continues to be a powerful tool that enables firms to focus on their core competencies.
Still, the business world is not moving fast enough in integrating these game-changing tools into its operations — and the next generation of bosses is growing impatient. They strive for streamlined days to achieve work-life harmony and try out new things at work. They do not want to be bogged down by routine tasks, especially with great tools ready at their disposal. To get the rat people out of their holes, businesses must revise their workflows for maximum efficiency.
The question for your business
Are you seeing apathy in your workforce?
