Gen Z's top job priority is "pay and salary," GenGuru cofounder says

Gen Z is prioritizing pay and salary in their job search, according to GenGuru cofounder Jonah Stillman.

Transcript

00:00It's pay. I mean, I run...

00:02More money is always good, right?

00:04My consulting firm specializes in generational-specific research,

00:07and the number one thing as of fall of 2024 that Gen Z cares about when choosing a job is pay and salary.

00:13And I think just to understand that fundamentally is each generation is shaped by unique events and conditions

00:18during their formative years, and if you think about those events that shape Gen Z,

00:22one of the core ones would be the 2008 recession, where our dinnertime conversations with our parents

00:27were about companies staying afloat, families staying afloat, and where the money's coming from,

00:30and our parents telling us that, you know, it's not participation awards,

00:34it's work your ass off or you might not be able to survive, right?

00:36So coming into the workforce with this idea that I need to be able to afford my life,

00:41and yes, things like purpose and meaning are critically important,

00:44but Gen Z is saying that if I can't afford life, you know, what am I supposed to do?

00:48And ideally, you can blend that with purpose and meaning, but if not, I can find that in other ways.

00:53So statistically, the number one thing Gen Z cares about when choosing an employer right now is pay and salary.