Gen Z and Millennials are burnt out, not from working hard, but because they lack hope

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Fortune

Suzy Welch says Gen Z and millennials are burnt out because older generations worked just as hard, but they ‘had hope’
By Dave Smith
Fri, September 19, 2025

A generational divide over workplace burnout has less to do with work intensity and more to do with diminished expectations for career rewards, according to business author and New York University professor Suzy Welch. The 66-year-old from Portland earned her MBA as a Baker Scholar from Harvard Business School and spent seven years as a management consultant at Bain & Co. before joining Harvard Business Review in 2001, serving as editor-in-chief. Speaking on the July 24 episode of the Masters of Scale podcast, Welch argued younger workers face the same demanding schedules as previous generations, but lack the fundamental belief that hard work will lead to meaningful advancement.

Welch said this insight emerged from a conversation she had with a 25-year-old freelance worker who asked Welch to create more content about worker fatigue among young people because her friends were “just so burnt out.” When Welch told this worker she used to work “seven days a week” at that age and loved the work—and would’ve done more of it if she could—the young woman offered a striking rebuttal: “But you had hope.”

“And I did have hope. We all did have hope,” Welch told Masters of Scale host Jeff Berman. “We believed that if if you worked hard you were rewarded for it. And so this is the disconnect.”
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Millennials are in a particularly bad spot, broadly speaking. About 66% of millennials report moderate or high levels of burnout, according to a recent report from Aflac.

“One possible explanation for the higher levels of burnout among millennials could be their unique career pressures and expectations,” the report said, which includes “more demanding work environments than other generations, defined by constant connectivity, high performance expectations and a competitive job market.” Millennial workers are also part of the “sandwich generation,” taking care of both children and their aging parents. According to a Principal Financial report, more than 60% of workers who juggle both responsibilities worry about burnout.

The context for this burnout crisis that young people are being forced to navigate multiple world-altering crises all at once: climate change, political instability, ongoing effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic uncertainty, and international conflicts like the Russia-Ukraine war. The psychological impact is profound and measurable: Research shows pandemic-related and climate-related distress are linked to more depression and anxiety symptoms and reduced health-related quality of life, while war-related distress was associated with greater anxiety. Notably, according to Harvard researchers, nearly half (45%) of young adults between 18 to 25 think their mental health is harmed by an overall “sense that things are falling apart.”
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“Gen Z thinks, ‘Yeah, I watched what happened to my parents’ career and I watched what happened to my older sister’s career and they worked very hard and they still got laid off,'” Welch said on the podcast.

Student debt represents a significant burden, with Gen Z paying an average of $526 monthly toward loans—nearly double the overall average of $284, according to Empower. Housing costs compound these pressures, having increased 121% from 1960 to 2017 while median household income rose only 29%. Currently, 87% of Gen Z and 62% of millennials cannot afford to purchase homes.
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The generational divide has significant economic implications, with workplace burnout costing businesses $322 billion annually in lost productivity, according to Gallup, and generating healthcare costs between $125 billion and $190 billion. As Gen Z’s role in the global workforce continues to grow and evolve, Welch’s insight about hope provides a framework for understanding why traditional approaches to workplace stress may prove insufficient for younger U.S. workers.

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