In response to T.J. Wihera’s Colorado Voices article, “Tech-savvy generation taking over” (from the Sunday, June 8, edition of The Denver Post) – EXCUSE ME?!
It’s obvious words like respect, honor, responsibility, please and thank you seldom grace young T.J.’s vocabulary-along with far too many of the Millennial, Echo Boomer, or Y Generation group that he boasts are “taking over.” Well you know what, T.J., I’m a baby boomer, and I’m not relinquishing my place.
Since Mr. Wihera indicates he is a 2008 graduate of CU-Boulder (congratulations, by the way), and his tirade revolves around problems with Millennials in the work force, I have to wonder whether T.J.’s basis for complaint is an inability to land a job. (A similar woe that has plagued many new college grads for years.)
Or is it the fact that worthy employers expect their employees to operate within minimum ethical standards that include dress code, personal appearance, and hygiene? How ’bout it, T.J.?
To his credit, however, Wihera poses some valid points. But.
1) Through FICA deductions from their paychecks, Millennials will indeed finance baby boomers” Social Security benefits. Sorry, T.J., chronologically it was inevitable – just as Generation Z (or whatever handle your kids” generation acquires) will do for you, providing the Social Security program survives into your retirement.
Unfortunately, as you indicate, that remains a major question mark. The system that was set up with good intent has been sponged off of and abused by politicians from both parties through the years. And since Millennials haven’t participated in the voting scene very long, can’t blame ’em for that malady.
2) Why should Millenials “show long-term loyalty to employers when there’s no long-term payoff for doing so?” Somehow the word “payoff,” rather than “benefit,” reflects an attitude of non-loyalty to begin with. But with executive scandals, layoffs and corporate profits on the downslide, which have collectively disrupted pension plans and robbed deserving employees, it’s no wonder a theme of diminished loyalty in the workforce is commonplace – even for non-Millennials.
3) Knowledge, skills and abilities, and how a person can become an asset to the company should be the primary concerns when employers choose to hire anyone. I couldn’t agree more.
But Wihera overlooks one important issue: When a person accepts a job with any organization, large or small, he or she becomes a representative of that company, sharing a responsibility with other employees to reflect a positive image.
What individuals choose to do outside the workplace – how they dress, or how many tattoos they decorate their body with and display – is entirely up to them.
Unless a person works from home – where he or she can waltz around in the nude if they prefer – the company that signs an employee’s paycheck has the right to establish minimum standards that reflect that company’s concept of a quality corporate image – just the same as whatever an individual does for the rest of his or her life will reflect positively or negatively upon the family that raised him or her.
If that notion doesn’t set well, T.J., better start your own corporation – maybe a tattoo and body piercing parlor.
4) We baby boomers – too many of us, apparently – have coddled our sons and daughters; we’ve spoiled our kids to the point that they learned the most important thing in the entire household was them and no one else.
As a society, we’ve also nurtured the idea that irresponsibility is the way to live; that everyone else is to blame for any misfortune a individual might suffer – and there’s a settlement lawyer around every corner to prove it! The result: Generation Y should more accurately be labeled Generation “ME”; it’s all about “me, me, me.”
Millennials probably believe the Constitution’s First Amendment was written with them solely in mind as well. Far too often neither good manners nor a little thought is extended towards others’ space wants, needs or feelings – regardless of age bracket, as illustrated by Wihera’s “why” list.
And speaking of “why,” it’s also obvious neither Wihera nor Eric Chester, the author/consultant who branded Millenials as “Generation Why,” paid any attention to history.
5) Millennials are certainly “coming of age in a very different place” than their predecessors – which is true of all previous generations. For example: In his lifetime, my father witnessed the demise of the horse and buggy, the rise of the automobile, the birth of computers, and he contributed to the space program that eventually placed a man on the moon.
And believe it or not, he survived it all without his underwear poking out above his beltline, and he shaved EVERY day.
I endured the technology scene as muscle cars peaked in popularity, eight-tracks become cassettes and then CDs, computers gradually became a part of controlling most everything, and postcards and letters evolved into e-mail.
And since Millennials have been weaned on computers and high-tech gadgetry, why shouldn’t they be more “tech-savvy”? Those who aren’t must not have paid much attention to their surroundings.
Whether Millennials are smarter and more innovative than prior generations, however, is a debate that will eventually be proved or disproved with time.
So who’s to blame for the Millennials’ one-sided mindset? Everyone looks to the ’60s as the era of great liberalization, a generation of anti-establishment hippies, bent on breaking the mold – who then faded away or moved on to become doctors, lawyers, congressmen and corporate execs.
But my theory on the liberalization of America goes back a bit farther, to World War II and the birth of the “Greatest Generation.”
Few can argue these folks sacrificed more to return this country – and the world – to a better way of life. These people suffered through the Great Depression and then went to war – united in the effort – and emerged victorious.
What they forfeited to do so is something we younger generations cannot fathom. The hardships they endured to achieve success became a lifestyle they did not want for their children.
Therefore, each following generation became a little more pampered – and less responsible – to the point where Millennials are telling baby boomers to get out of the way and think nothing of it.
Regardless of the generation, consider this: If it weren’t for the progressive intelligence and creativity of ALL prior generations, Millennials would not exist, or have the high-tech toys to play with, OR have the privilege to whine their protests.
Through the eons, each generation has contributed, suffered and progressed – and “come of age in a very different place” – as will the Millennials and (God willing) their children, and their children’s children. Millennials are neither better nor worse than the Xers, the baby boomers, the “Greatest Generation” or the age groups that preceded us all.
Each generation possessed, and will possess, unique abilities to earn and sustain their place in the grand scheme of mankind in the world. But we ALL must realize that our survival as a nation, and the world, depends upon a cooperative, responsible, respectful effort.
So, Mr. Wihera, rather than expound impressions that Millennials think only of themselves by telling baby boomers to butt out, why not offer this as your mantra:
“Thank you. Thank you to the generations that have preceded me for providing the opportunities and the privileges I enjoy today. I’ll do my best to keep that momentum alive and well, and infuse my share of improvements for my kids – the next generation – just as every prior generation has done for me.”
Gary Miller is a freelance writer, author and baby boomer who lives in Estes Park.
