The Real Reasons Gen Z Wants a Four-day Workweek

In the summer of 2024, Squarespace’s chief marketing officer, Kinjil Mathur, attracted criticism when she told Gen Z job seekers that they, like her, should be “willing to do anything” to land their first job.

"I was willing to work for free, I was willing to work any hours they needed—even on evenings and weekends," Kinjil told Fortune. "You really have to just be willing to do anything, any hours, any pay, any type of job." The online backlash to Kinjil’s statement was immediate and brutal, forcing her to walk those comments back. "I shared my own college internship experiences, and my words were misrepresented as career advice for a whole generation," Kinjil later said in a statement.

The episode demonstrates a growing clash of values between the various generations in today’s workplace. While some still take pride in sacrificing their well-being to demonstrate their commitment, others—primarily younger workers—see things differently. "I think they have more of an attitude of work-to-live as opposed to live-to-work that many of us grew up with," said Ravin Jesuthasan, the global leader for transformation services at the consulting giant Mercer, on stage in Davos in 2024. "This is particularly true in the West. They have seen the legacy of all these broken promises. In the old days and in many parts of the West, they would promise you if you worked for 30 years, you’d have this defined benefit pension, you'd have retiree medical care, etc. None of that exists today."

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