Why firing Gen Z is a ‘huge mistake,’ according to business expert

While Gen Z might have a stigma against them in the workplace and employers are already firing them in droves, business experts are warning companies not to let go of their younger employees just yet.

A new report from Intelligent.com revealed one in six businesses were hesitant to hire recent college graduates over concerns about their preparedness for work, communication skills and professionalism.

Perhaps more shockingly, six in 10 employers had already fired the college graduates they hired in 2024.

Gen Z’s wobbly existence in the hiring world aside, business experts say firing them would be a “huge mistake.”

Since Gen Zers now outnumber Baby Boomers in the workplace and are expected to comprise 30 percent of U.S. workers by 2030, employers will need to adapt to them, not the other way around, according to Joy Taylor, the managing director at consulting firm alliant. Taylor said, “…this is a huge mistake…mastering intergenerational workflows will be crucial to tackling the most anticipated business challenges in 2025, from succession planning to culture realignment.”

“Whether employers like it or not, this generation is bringing a Blue Ocean lens to modern work culture to modern work culture, and it’s doing companies a huge disservice to run away from this rather than embrace and adapt,” Taylor told Newsweek.

While the legacy leaders in the workplace are reaching the end of their careers, Gen Z has been known for turning corporate norms on their heads.

“By resisting this workforce change, too many Gen X or Baby Boomer leaders are failing to set their organizations up for long-term success and resiliency, as well as missing out on the opportunity to harness this new generation’s potential,” Taylor said.

Gen Z has some gifts established employers can learn from like their digital literacy, entrepreneurial spirit and willingness to speak up.

“Learning to appreciate the unique gifts and talents of all generations is what will make the single greatest outcomes,” Taylor said. “Businesses that are capable of harnessing those great talents will ultimately be the winners.”

Since entering the workforce at around the same time as the pandemic, Gen Z has quickly gained a reputation for being lazy and uncooperative, but that stigma might be a self-fulfilling prophecy.

“Any time we get data calling out Gen Z in particular, it feels like it’s taken as more of a justification for how ‘the younger generation doesn’t want to work’ instead of triggering questions of what exactly is at the root of the issues with employees in this age group,” Alex Beene, a financial literacy instructor for the University of Tennessee at Martin, told Newsweek.

“We know Gen Z workers in general have a different perspective on life and often view their personal activities and goals above those of their employers. While this certainly isn’t a bad thing, if it bleeds too much into your workspace, it can dramatically affect performance and lead to those employees being shown the door.”

In the Intelligent survey, 75 percent of companies reported that some or all of their recent college graduate hires were unsatisfactory.

Still, leading your young employees to the door too soon could become a fatal flaw for your organization.

“Employers are firing Gen Z workers because they’re not used to a workforce that isn’t willing to tolerate outdated practices, toxic work cultures, or subpar pay,” HR consultant Bryan Driscoll told Newsweek. “Gen Z isn’t afraid to demand respect, fair treatment, and work-life balance, and that makes some employers uncomfortable. Instead of adapting, they’re reacting, and poorly.”

Driscoll said firing workers because they’re vocal about what doesn’t work at their companies would be “shortsighted,” and instead, companies should lean into their “fresh and needed perspectives.”

“They’ve grown up with access to information and are far more aware of their rights and the world around them than previous generations,” Driscoll said. “Dismissing their needs instead of evolving to meet them isn’t just a mistake. It’s a step backward for any company trying to stay competitive.”

Because Gen Z is set to become the future leaders, firing them is not the answer. It could even set them up as competition, Driscoll said.

“My advice to employers: stop viewing Gen Z as a threat and start seeing them as an opportunity to innovate your workplace,” he said.

Michael Ryan, a finance expert and the founder of michaelryanmoney.com, called the decision to fire Gen Z-ers a “critical strategic error.”

“The perceived challenges with Gen Z workers, such as communication style differences or misaligned expectations, are not generational flaws,” Ryan told Newsweek. “But rather symptoms of a larger failure in talent management and organizational adaptability. Forward-thinking companies need to view these as opportunities for organizational evolution, rather than grounds for termination.”

The tech fluency Gen Z brings alongside their adaptability from entering the workforce during the pandemic can be strengths, Ryan added.

To cultivate them, Ryan said companies should invest in their onboarding and mentorship programs and tailor them to Gen Z’s perspective and skills.

“Leverage Gen Z’s digital status to drive innovation from the bottom up. Implement reverse mentoring programs and create cross-generational teams to foster knowledge transfer and spark creative problem-solving,” Ryan said.

“The companies that will thrive in the coming decades are those that recognize Gen Z not as a liability. The question isn’t whether you can afford to retain Gen Z talent. It’s whether you can afford not to.”