Gen Z is not turning away from work, but it is no longer accepting it as it comes. Entering a labour market shaped by competition, uncertainty and fewer clear entry points, young people are approaching their first experiences with a clear sense of what they expect and what they refuse. Work remains necessary, but it is also weighed, tested and, when needed, challenged.
Work as both necessity and trajectory
Work takes up a large part of everyday life, and that alone shapes expectations. “It’s 60 hours a week,” says private equity auditor and EYnovation coordinator at EY, Juan Gasca. “So you should at least enjoy some of it.” For him, work is first about “the bills”, but it is also “a way to get fulfilled.” Rather than following a fixed path, he approaches each role as a step, choosing it for what it allows him to develop. “Maybe I need more commercial, maybe I need more technical.”
Business transformation analyst at Deloitte, Julie Federspiel follows a similar logic, though she frames it through learning. After studying international relations, she entered finance without prior background and treats her role as a way to explore and progress. “As long as I go to bed each night and can confidently say today I learned something new, today I did something new and I came out better for it, then it was a good day.”
We’re quite outspoken about things we don’t tolerate.
That idea of building experience over time also appears in a more concrete way in the perspective of business developer at Gemolux and content creator, Sarah Akhmiss. After starting in a large organisation, she now works in a smaller structure where responsibilities come earlier and are less defined. “I used to have people helping me with the tasks… now I have to build every project by myself.” That shift brings both pressure and autonomy. “If I want to have stress, I can put some stress on my shoulders. If I want to be chill, I can be chill,” she says, pointing to a level of accountability she values.
Among those about to enter the labour market, expectations are already clear. Co-president at Anesec and economics student at Université Paris I Panthéon-Sorbonne, 
A more competitive job market
Getting a first foothold is not straightforward. “Job fairs were where the companies were actually lining up to get the new grads,” says Federspiel. “Nowadays it’s kind of the other way around. It feels like job listings are scarce and competition is high.” “You’re competing against a pool of almost everyone,” adds Gasca.
This pressure is already visible before entering full-time work. Chivard describes sending applications months in advance without response. “I needed to give my CVs between December and January to work in July, and I still haven’t got any answers or just negative answers.” At the same time, entry-level tasks that once allowed students to gain first experience are becoming less accessible. “All the administrative work is mostly done by AI,” notes Freitas.
The day I feel like I’m stagnating…I would change jobs.
Access can also depend on less formal factors. Akhmiss highlights how some student jobs rely on existing connections. “They were all like family of people working at the bank,” she says.
Between financial reality and the search for meaning
Money remains central, especially at the beginning of a career. “Life is expensive,” says Freitas, who places salary first, while Akhmiss insists on the need to find a balance. “You need a balance between what you earn and what you actually want to do.” For Chivard, the urgency is immediate: finding a job has become pressing to be able to “live, eat out sometimes, go out and have a normal youth life”.
At the same time, salary alone is not enough to define a choice. Gasca explains that he would accept a lower salary if a role offers stronger learning opportunities and a clearer sense of purpose. Federspiel shares that view. “It’s definitely the purpose,” she says, even if priorities can shift over time.
Respect, management and boundaries
Expectations towards management leave little room for compromise. “Why should I give my whole heart and soul to someone who doesn’t deserve it?” says Chivard. The question of respect comes up repeatedly, although it is not understood in the same way by everyone.
Freitas draws a distinction between liking a manager and respecting them, with professional credibility as the key factor, while Gasca adds that working under someone who does not understand their role quickly becomes difficult to accept. In smaller teams, these dynamics are even more visible. “If someone is mean to me… I would always change jobs,” says Akhmiss, pointing to how directly management style affects daily work.
Having a manager who knows what they’re doing is essential.
Views on flexibility vary, often depending on how teams operate. Gasca questions hybrid models when they are not coordinated. “Either you are fully remote or fully in the office,” he says, pointing to the difficulties that arise when schedules differ. Akhmiss, for her part, clearly prefers working on site. “It’s more human,” she explains, while also noting that remote work can lead to disengagement when expectations are unclear.
Federspiel approaches the issue from another angle, focusing on how to respond. “Could you please repeat that?” she suggests, describing a way to address inappropriate behaviour without escalating the situation.
Flexibility and ways of working
Views on flexibility vary, often depending on how teams operate. Gasca questions hybrid models when they are not coordinated. “Either you are fully remote or fully in the office,” he says, pointing to the difficulties that arise when schedules differ. Akhmiss, for her part, clearly prefers working on site. “It’s more human,” she explains, while also noting that remote work can lead to disengagement when expectations are unclear.
Federspiel takes a more pragmatic approach, valuing flexibility for the space it creates alongside work. “I can make it fit better with all the commitments that I do have,” she says.
We don’t all want to do TikToks and social media.
Mobility and progression
Long-term careers within a single company are no longer taken for granted. Staying depends less on loyalty than on what a role continues to offer over time. “I am afraid that someday I will stagnate,” says Federspiel, pointing to the importance she places on continued growth.
The same idea is echoed by Akhmiss. “The day I feel like I’m stagnating… I would change jobs,” she says, reflecting an approach driven by learning and progression. Gasca expresses a similar logic, linking the decision to stay to the opportunities a role provides.
Beyond stereotypes
The idea that young people do not want to work is widely rejected, but also seen as reductive. “That’s not true,” says Akhmiss, while Freitas pushes back against another common cliché: “we don’t all want to do TikToks.”
Another perception also emerges: that of a generation often described as more fragile or less resilient. Gasca questions it directly. “I feel like everyone thinks Gen Z is very fragile… I don’t see this as a thing,” he says, pushing back against a view he considers too simplistic.
For Federspiel, what is often interpreted as fragility reflects something else entirely. “We’re quite outspoken about things we don’t tolerate,” she explains, pointing to a greater willingness to speak up rather than a lack of resilience.
Chivard, however, offers a more nuanced view. “It’s 50-50,” she says, referring to a divide within her own generation, where some are committed and motivated, while others are less engaged.
A generation setting its conditions
Work remains central, but the way it is approached has clearly shifted. Success is no longer defined in a single way. For Freitas, it is about being proud of what one does without needing external validation, while Federspiel associates it with continuous growth and Chivard with helping others. For Gasca, it lies in progression and building towards the next step.
Those entering the workforce already know what they expect, while those already working are testing, adjusting and moving when needed. Work has not lost its place, but the terms under which it is accepted are now more clearly defined.
This article was written for the May 2026 issue of Paperjam magazine, published on 29 April. The content is produced exclusively for the magazine. It is published on the site to contribute to Paperjam’s comprehensive archive. Click on this link to subscribe to the magazine.
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