The psychology of job hopping of many Gen Z

Choose a better working environment

Ms. Pham Ngoc H. (born in 1997) lives in Nhi Chau ward (Hai Duong city). In 2019, Ms. H. graduated from the Academy of Journalism and Communication. With a dynamic personality, Ms. H. stayed in Hanoi to work in the communications department for a regional food company. Although she has a job that many students dream of after graduating with a stable income, Ms. H. is still not satisfied. She feels that her daily work is too narrow, monotonous, and formulaic. In addition, the direct manager of the department where Ms. H. works is old, seems to be inattentive, and imposes too much on work, making too strict demands, even on unworthy tasks.

So just over a year later, Ms. H. submitted her resignation and moved to work at a company specializing in introducing and promoting tours. However, when doing this job, Ms. H. found many limitations. Due to the requirements of the job, Ms. H. often had to travel far from home. In particular, there were many types of tourists, many of whom were difficult, making a young person like her feel tired. So not long after that, Ms. H. once again resigned.

Learning from experience, this time she quit her job, Ms. H. took some time off and studied the job she wanted to do more carefully. Finally, she decided to work at a media company specializing in organizing large events. Up to now, although she finds the job quite suitable and the income is higher than her previous jobs, Ms. H. still has not given up on finding another job.

“I just want to find a job that is truly suitable for me and where I can develop my abilities. Many people feel regretful when they see me quit my job, asking why I quit such a good job. But I see that with my abilities, I can do better work in more suitable environments, so I am not afraid to change jobs,” said Ms. H.

After finishing high school, Mr. Pham Van D. (born in 1998) in Pham Thai ward (Kinh Mon) entered the labor market. Because he did not have a degree, Mr. D. applied to work as a worker in a company in an industrial park in the province. Since then, Mr. D. has worked in many different companies such as leather shoes, paper production, electronics assembly, garment...

According to Mr. D., the reason he often changes jobs is because the job is not suitable. With a low income, he can apply for any job to find something suitable for himself. However, the working environment in enterprises is very restrictive and strict about time, making him feel more and more frustrated. Recently, Mr. D. decided not to apply for any more enterprises but to import agricultural products to sell in and outside the province.

“I find this job much more comfortable than working in a company, and the income is higher. If I had just been content with being a factory worker, I certainly wouldn’t have been able to find a suitable job like this,” said Mr. D.

No less pressure

After graduating from high school, Ms. Pham Thi Thu P. (born in 2020) in Binh Han ward (Hai Duong city) did not go to university but chose to register to work abroad. Although she spent about 1 year learning the language and required professional skills, for family reasons, Ms. P. decided not to go abroad to work. At this time, to participate in the labor market, Ms. P. did not have any professional skills, so she chose to sell rented clothes. The job took a lot of time and the salary was low, so a few months later, Ms. P. switched to working for a unit specializing in online sales. However, this job was not much better than her old job, so Ms. P. changed jobs again. Currently, Ms. P. is an employee at a business specializing in providing interior design products.

Ms. P. expressed: “Without any professional qualifications in hand, I just wanted to find a job that suited me to stabilize my life. That’s why I had to change jobs.”

But according to Ms. P., because she often changes jobs, some professional recruiters have rejected her application. They are afraid that she does not intend to stay long-term and will affect the company's work. Sometimes she is also tired when looking for a new job.

Although she has found a better job, Ms. Pham Ngoc H. also admits that changing jobs will bring a lot of pressure. A lack of commitment makes things not go smoothly, easily leading to stumbling blocks in the current job. People who are not mentally strong find it difficult to cope when changing jobs, easily leading to stress, which can affect their health and life for a while.

Ms. H. said that she had a friend who often changed jobs. But after the third time, she became discouraged and disappointed. Her friend even thought about giving up and not looking for a job for a long time. She had to encourage her friend a lot to continue looking for a new suitable job.

Choose the right one

Frequent job-hopping seems to be a characteristic of Gen Z workers. According to a survey at the end of 2023 by Anphabe Joint Stock Company (a human resource consulting company in Ho Chi Minh City), Gen Z's intention to stay with the company is only about 2.2 years, much lower than Gen Y (3.2 years) and Gen X (4.3 years).

In Hai Duong, there are no statistics from the authorities on the job-hopping rate of Gen Z. An officer from the Hai Duong Youth Employment Service Center (Hai Duong Provincial Youth Union) said that young people today are very knowledgeable and they often find jobs themselves through many different information channels. In particular, due to the development of technology, job information can be easily searched, so young people also have more opportunities in choosing a working environment. Therefore, it is understandable that young people often change jobs.

Although many young people change jobs, the number of young people registering for unemployment insurance is very low. Explaining this, the staff of the Hai Duong Employment Service Center said that it could be because young people often work freelance for a short time or because of agreements, so their employers have not yet participated in social insurance, unemployment insurance, etc. It is also possible that many young people are very active and have found jobs immediately after quitting their jobs, without needing to receive unemployment insurance, as in the case of Ms. H. mentioned above.

It can be seen that, nowadays, along with the constant transformation and development of the economy and science and technology, people, especially young people, also have great changes. Many concepts in life, in some aspects, are gradually no longer suitable. The view that one should not "look at the other mountain from this mountain" in work is also a limitation for Gen Z when they want to affirm, develop and seek better opportunities for themselves.

While writing this article, we had the opportunity to meet many Gen Zers, including those who frequently change jobs and those who have never changed jobs. However, all of them affirmed that change is also an opportunity. It may be a better opportunity or it may not be as good as the current job. But the positive point that those who dare to change jobs have is to challenge themselves, know their strengths and weaknesses to develop and overcome.

Gen Z is at an age with many valuable qualities. Although they do not have much experience, they are energetic and quick, especially in technology, to meet the needs of their work. Therefore, to retain Gen Z, businesses also need to make changes in line with the trend. It is necessary to create an open and suitable working environment for Gen Z to develop their talents, strengths, and stick with the job. On the other hand, if they like to change jobs, Gen Z should also consider their own adaptability to avoid falling into a deadlock and fatigue like some of the cases mentioned above.

“

Gen Z is an abbreviation for Generation Z, which is used to refer to the group of people born between the Millennials and Generation Alpha. Gen Z are those born between 1997 and 2012, equivalent to those aged 12 to 27 in 2024. Generation Z was born during the technology and internet boom, so they have been exposed to mobile devices since they were young. They easily access information quickly through the use of social networks such as Facebook, YouTube, Instagram and many other platforms.