A survey by the UK whistleblowing charity, Protect, conducted in conjunction with YouGov, shows that Gen-Z workers (i.e. those aged 18 to 24) are less likely than their older colleagues to blow the whistle at work, but more likely to post something on social media or speak to the press.
Survey results
The survey of over 2,000 people asked what issue respondents would be most likely to raise a concern about if they witnessed an incident in the workplace. Gen-Z respondents ranked sexual harassment as the issue of greatest importance to them, with 67% saying they would raise a concern if they witnessed an incident. However, this was lower than respondents aged 25 to 34 (of whom 76% would raise concerns), 35 to 44 (of whom 77% would raise concerns), 45 to 54 (of whom 77% would raise concerns), and 55+ (of whom 78% would raise concerns).
This trend was replicated across all types of incident covered by the survey, including theft and fraud, damage to the environment, breach of law or policy, discrimination and covering up wrongdoing. The biggest difference was in relation to incidents that endanger health and safety, where 86% of those aged 55+, 80% of those aged 45 to 54, 77% of those aged 35 to 44, and 70% of those aged 25 to 34 would raise a concern, but only 56% of those aged 18 to 24 would do so.
However, when it comes to posting about workplace concerns on social media, 18 to 24 year olds were most likely to consider this, with 5% saying they would post about witnessing workplace wrongdoing or malpractice, compared to less than 1% of those aged 55+. Similarly, young workers expressed greater willingness to go to the press with their concerns, with 13% of 18 to 24 year olds saying they would do this, again compared to just 1% of the over 55s.
What does this mean for employers?
As life expectancy has increased, and people remain in work for longer, multigenerational workplaces have become the norm. It is important to avoid stereotyping, but employers must bear in mind that the different generations tend to have different expectations and communication styles, as shown in this survey. Employers should ensure that they have a clear whistleblowing policy in place encouraging all employees to raise any concerns internally, whether to their manager, HR, or via an official whistleblowing channel or hotline. They should also consider setting clear rules on what employees are and are not permitted to post online, and on communications with the press, particularly if they wish to be able to discipline employees who post or speak to the press about concerns they would rather deal with internally.