Almost half of workers want to find a new job in the next year

Almost half of all American workers plan on finding a new job in the next 12 months, a statistic that shoots up to two-thirds for Generation Z.

A new report by Bankrate says that 48% of workers want to start a job search soon if they haven’t already been looking. That number is down from 56% in March 2023.

Gen Z are much more likely to look for a new job at 64%, according to Bankrate (RATE), while just 25% of baby boomers surveyed will be seeking out new opportunities.

Mark Hamrick, senior economic advisor for Bankrate, told Quartz that the results of the survey are “consistent with what we would tend to view as normalization of the job market.”

Hamrick said it’s telling that at a time when inflation remains high half the workforce is considering looking for a new job. He believes “at least part of that is inspired by economics,” as workers search for higher paying and higher quality jobs.

Bankrate found that while just 22% of all workers said they were willing to relocate for a job, 39% of Gen Z said they would consider a move. Baby boomers are also the least likely age group to report relocating for a new job, at just 6%.

“That’s kind of an American story, or even, to some degree, a global story, where there is this mobility and some people are willing to move to presumably improve their lives and to derive higher compensation.”

Bankrate also found that 29% of workers are interested in starting their own businesses, including 41% of Gen Z, 34% of Millennial, and 23% of Gen X workers.

“If there’s a sign of potential for the US economy, it’s about enterprise births,” Hamrick said. “It’s promising and I love that younger cohorts — and even 12% of Boomers — are thinking of that.”