Young workers: how to make work more welcoming

There is growing evidence that young people do not see the world of work as a healthy or welcoming place.

Deloitte’s 2026 Gen Z and Millennial survey found key sources of stress included not being recognised, not being treated fairly and not having enough time to complete work.

These concerns are easy to understand. Psychological research – from positive psychology and Carol Ryff’s model of psychological wellbeing to self-determination theory – has long recognised that humans are driven to feel competent and effective, connected to others, able to exercise some control over our lives, and to experience meaning, purpose and growth.

Concerns about having enough time relate directly to the need to feel competent. It is natural to worry about not being able to perform at our best, then being judged as – or simply feeling – incompetent. This may help explain why the IOSH young worker survey found that a third of respondents feel anxious about taking full rest breaks.

Other concerns point to a lack of psychological security: uncertainty about what employers expect or not being fairly judged or recognised for their performance.

Work ethic: where it’s been, not where it’s at

We have a fundamental need for some control over our lives, but the extent to which people expect work to provide autonomy can change between generations. The 2025 Youth Voice Census, for example, found that young people highly value flexibility and autonomy, and have growing confidence in their creativity. Rather than assuming this reflects a deficiency in work ethic, perhaps we should ask whether traditional models of work still meet expectations of worthwhile work.

This could help address concerns highlighted in Sir Charlie Mayfield’s Keep Britain Working review about preventing people falling out of employment through ill health. It could potentially provide some answers to the UK’s productivity challenges.

In part, this requires an evolution in how we manage people. Traditional management - assigning the right people and resources to tasks, ensuring workers understand what is required, monitoring performance and providing feedback - remains a solid foundation. However, the challenges facing UK industry call for more sophisticated approaches.

Workers are individuals

The best leaders understand that workers are individuals, with particular strengths, aspirations and demands. We can get to know people through simple but powerful questions: What does a good day at work look like? What is more difficult than it ought to be? How well are we making use of your strengths? What do you look forward to - or worry about? How does what you do contribute to the wider team or organisation? What difference does your work make?

This is not about giving managers a set of cue cards. It requires active listening, an appreciation of fundamental human needs, and the discretion, authority and time to respond.

This could mean adjustments to a role, additional mentoring, different ways of giving instructions, changes to how tasks are performed, more regular feedback - or even stepping back if someone feels micromanaged. As one example, the Youth Voice Census 2025 found that young people express high confidence in teamwork. If an individual thrives on teamwork, giving them opportunities to work with others rather than in isolation could play to those strengths while meeting their need to connect with others.

Young people may particularly struggle to come forward and say that they do not understand something, do not enjoy an aspect of their work, or see a better way of doing it. Routine conversations can draw this out.

When we actively recognise and develop people’s strengths, address their concerns and build their confidence, we create the conditions in which workers and their resilience can flourish.

The answer is not to make young people fit an outdated model of work. It is to create the conditions in which people of all ages can use and develop their abilities, find meaning and do their best work.