Studer Community Institute

Shannon's Window: How latch-key kids can help boomers see the light

May 16, 2015
/ Shannon Nickinson
/ early-learning

There the Baby Boomers go again. Ernst & Young’s Global Generations Research surveyed some 10,000 workers in eight countries to gauge employees attitudes about all manner of things. The data shows a big generational gap between Baby Boomer bosses and their younger employees. Millennials especially express frustration about working longer hours as wages have stalled and their work-life balance suffers. The Boomer Boss just doesn't get what all the fussing is about. Read the Washington Post story here, but here was the key takeaway for me.

"Close to 80 percent of millennials surveyed are part of dual-income couples in which both work full time. Of Generation X workers, people in their 30s and 40s now, 73 percent are. But of baby boomers, the generation born just after World War II that now occupies most top management positions, just 47 percent have a full-time working spouse. More than a quarter of baby-boomer workers have a spouse at home, or one who works part time or with flexible hours and is responsible for taking care of all home-front duties. “I really see that there’s an empathy gap in the workplace,” said Karyn Twaronite, EY global-diversity and inclusiveness officer. “When there’s frustration about work-life balance in the workplace, and you think your boss doesn’t get it, that very likely could be true. ”

I'm a Gen X-er — a latch-key kid who grew up on after-school specials and MTV when it had music videos. I came out of college in the work world in 1994; I know all about job hunting in the recession. This desire for balance is not only something the Millennials crave. That's a conversation I've had with Boomer Bosses Past. And it always ended the same way: Long hours, nights, weekends. Blah blah blah. Tough break kid, that's the way it was when I was coming up. If it was good enough for me.... Clearly I recall one such conversation with a Boomer Boss that included a nostalgic soliloquy about missing plenty of family diners and school functions because sports — his beat back in the day — took place after school and on weekends. He handled it just fine, thank you. "How'd your wife like it?" I asked. "Was all that her idea of a good time?" And to his credit, he allowed that possibly, yes, she might not have liked doing all of those weekend and after-school events as a solo parent. Which means there may be hope. Because now that the generation that spent its youth railing against The Man is The Man at the Top of the work food chain. Here's hoping more of them can be Better Men.

Back to Blogs

Shannon's Window: How latch-key kids can help boomers see the light

Recent Posts