Speaking to TODAY, Ms Lee later said she has learnt to “see both sides” of the issue and was glad to have sparked a conversation about work ethics. She also felt that her post had been “greatly misunderstood” to mean that she was promoting hard work at the expense of work-life balance, though she said she could have been clearer about her intentions and meaning behind the post.
This is not the first time a business owner has been lambasted online for his or her comments on young people’s work ethic. In 2020, Mr Lim himself posted on Facebook about how several young graduates that he had interviewed for a job did not seem “hungry” for the role.
Like Ms Lee, Mr Lim also noticed back then that applicants had made a range of requests – including not wishing to work on weekends, asking for transport allowances and a team of junior co-workers to assist in tasks as well as more annual leave and higher salaries.
Human resource experts and sociologists told TODAY that the apparent negative impressions that some employers may have of younger workers can be explained by the different circumstances that the millennials and Gen Zers grew up in.
Mr Adrian Choo, founder of career consulting company Career Agility International, said that older generations were more focused on the rat race and getting ahead in their careers, during a time when Singapore was less affluent.
“The younger generation, a lot of them are still living with their parents … so their immediate priorities may not be about getting married and starting a family, they are focused more on self-actualisation,” he said.
This “self-actualisation” involves learning new skills and gaining new experiences as opposed to being preoccupied with climbing the corporate ladder, for instance.
TODAY also previously found that the pandemic caused younger workers to reshuffle their priorities, with some seeing the turbulent times as an opportunity to pursue their passions.
Negative labels aside, some experts pointed out that it is not often easy for young people to make sense of what they are doing, or feel motivated, when they are faced with the current state of the world, with its litany of woes ranging from health crises, armed conflicts to severe heatwaves.
National University of Singapore (NUS) sociologist Tan Ern Ser said: “(Young people) desire to do well in their career or business and live the Singapore Dream. However, the path ahead they confront isn’t always easy: High cost of living, income and employment insecurity, stiff competition at work, and, in some cases, being part of the sandwiched generation.”
He added: “These may combine to produce disillusionment and, in some cases, a lack of motivation.”
So, what do younger people in Singapore feel about work and more specifically, traditionally celebrated values at the workplace – such as hard work and loyalty – that may or may not require a rethink?
And where, in the grand scheme of things, does work fit into their lives today?
TODAY interviewed youths aged between 23 and 35 to find out.
WORK HARD? NAH, WE RATHER WORK SMART
While claims that the younger generation eschews hard work may not be totally baseless, those interviewed also said that youngsters may not feel motivated to work hard due to good reason. They also do not believe working hard in itself is the key to doing well at work.
The idea of hard work has changed for the younger generation, said Mr Isaac Neo, who works in the security risk industry, where he monitors risks facing his clients when they travel overseas.
“We grew up in more comfortable times … Our nature of work is very different and we deal mostly with technology, where so-called ‘hard work’ is less visible,” said the 28-year-old.
“In the past, hard work meant that you put in the hours to churn out output, and if you stayed in the office for long hours, it meant you were working hard, but that’s not the case anymore.”
Mr Neo said that it is up to companies to adapt to these new definitions of “hard work”, something he feels that his company has done well.
“I’ve been lucky to have bosses who just leave me alone to complete the work, and as long as it’s done, they don’t really care if you’re in the office or how many hours you clock a day,” he said.
“And I think that should be the way that hard work is viewed – not about the amount of hours you put in, but how good the final product is.”
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