Britain’s Gen Z: ‘No, Thanks’ on Job-Hopping

The average Gen Zer now wants to stay with one company for seven years, twice as long as everyone else. Why the race to stability?

January 28, 2025

If you’d asked a Gen Zer a few years ago about how long they wanted to stay at one company, you’d likely have heard comments like “as short a time as possible.” Most saw job-hopping as a path to pay raises; most regarded corporate loyalty as a joke.

But guess who’s had a change of heart? In a remarkable finding, almost nine out of 10 Gen Zers rank stability as a priority, alongside financial security and a sense of community and belonging. That’s according to a recent study by UK-based insurance company Admiral. On average, Gen Z wants to stay with one company for seven years, the report says. That’s more than double the average of 3.5 years reported by workers overall. 

It's happening for a slew of reasons, not least among them the rough state of the economy. Over the twelve-month period ending on October 31st of last year (this being the most recent government data available), the number of job openings dropped 12%. An additional 7% decline is predicted by May. This, even as housing costs have become eye watering. “Demand has dropped off completely,” says Nicol Thomson, Korn Ferry’s senior client partner and managing director of RPO in EMEA. “Gen Zers are seeing friends losing their jobs.” This weak economic environment is coinciding with Gen Z entering a new phase in their lives, whether it’s wanting to start a family or having to care for parents. “This part of the population is starting to pick up responsibilities,” says Jaime Maxwell-Grant, senior client partner in Korn Ferry’s UK and Ireland consulting business.

Other factors may also be affecting the attitudes of Gen Zers. For instance, they are likely coming around to the realization that skipping jobs regularly isn’t the right thing (or even feasible) to do. “New jobs are stressful, and the grass isn’t always greener on the other side,” says Grant Duncan, Korn Ferry’s managing director and sector lead for media, entertainment, and digital EMEA. Duncan notes that recent layoffs have made Gen Zers increasingly aware that not every organization wants to employ them, particularly if they’ve got a spotty CV. “Job-hopping doesn’t look great on your résumé,” he says. “It signals a lack of commitment and lack of resilience.” 

Is this a good or a bad sign for employers? “Both,” says Drew Hill, a London-based Korn Ferry senior client partner. He says this generation is, on average, more risk averse, with lower levels of teenage pregnancy and lower alcohol use. They are also better educated than the previous generation. “When you put this together, they have less of a risk appetite than we do,” he says. And that means they are less likely to jump ship.

Keeping skilled, hardworking employees over many years can greatly benefit a company. But some workers won’t exhibit those qualities; alternately, they might not fit the corporate culture. Those are employees that executives might not want to retain. “The upside is retention, and the downside is you have retention,” Hill says. 

For employers, Gen Z’s almost innate tech savvy is hugely important. Skills in artificial intelligence and the ability to absorb and apply new techniques will be a boon to some companies. “They are so adept at using tech that they don’t even see it as tech,” Thomson says. “That’s an advantage.”

 

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