​“Stanley, we just need to be careful hiring younger people…they don’t always have the same drive.”

As someone who is 22 and sits in the middle of this conversation every day, speaking to employers on one side and candidates on the other, I understand where this view comes from.

And it made me ask myself: “Are younger people less motivated to work?” A question I’m sure we’ve all debated at some point.

However, when you properly look into this, I think the question is too generalised. Speak to different employers and you’ll hear completely different views. Some will give examples of younger staff being the most driven and motivated in their team, while others will say the exact opposite.

So, in short, I realised I was asking the wrong question.

Instead of asking: Are younger people less motivated?

Ask yourself: Why is it that younger people are sometimes perceived as less motivated?

In my opinion, it’s because the world in which younger people are working in today is completely different from the one that shaped previous generations. If you don’t understand that shift, you’ll misread what’s actually happening.

Younger people aren’t necessarily less motivated, but they are part of a different generation, shaped by a different environment. As a result, they may need to be managed differently in order to get the best out of them.

In this blog, I’m going to look at how this younger generation differs from those before them, why they can sometimes be perceived as less motivated, and how we can adapt management styles to get the best out of them - whilst still maintaining a motivated and happy workforce.

1. Social Media

Let’s start with the obvious one - social media.

The impact it’s had isn’t subtle. It’s completely rewired how attention, motivation, and reward work.

Every scroll, every like, every notification delivers a small dopamine hit - an instant sense of reward.

Translating that into the workplace, it could mean that people are looking for:

·         fast feedback

·         constant stimulation

·         quicker results

But looking into everyday workplaces, people aren’t getting those short-term wins because:

·         results take time

·         there’s a perception that there isn’t always recognition

·         progress isn’t always visible day-to-day

It’s not that younger people are less hardworking. It’s that the reward systems they’ve grown up with are misaligned with the reality of work.

When everything outside of work feels quick, engaging, and stimulating, but work can feel slow, repetitive, and unrewarding by comparison, it could look like people aren’t engaged.

That doesn’t mean they don’t have grit.

It just means that their outlook is different.

There is a reasonably simple fix for this though… increased communication. This isn’t just from the employer; communication works both ways, but people need to work in an environment where communication and feedback (including managing upwards) are encouraged.

2. The Shift from Dreams to Remuneration

The second is money. At the end of the day, money is why people work. Passion plays a part, but with everything getting more and more expensive, it’s as important as ever.

Everyone in my generation grew up being told the same thing:

“Follow your passion”

“You can do anything”

“Work hard and you can be what you want to be”

But when you actually look around now, reality feels very different. This isn’t because money is all people care about these days, its due to years of inflation rising at greater rates than the minimum wage has been... and now people are struggling.

Most people aren’t chasing dreams.

They’re chasing:

·         Pay that allows them to enjoy life outside of work

·         Feeling valued in their work

·         Opportunities that are better than what they currently have

And they’re often willing to put up with work they don’t love to get there, if they know how to get there. In my opinion, this is the same as every other generation, but the difference being people now want clear goals, parameters and next steps.

Sarah, one of my colleagues who’s been recruiting in horticulture, agriculture and fresh produce for 7 years now, talks about how the graduate and entry-level roles vs minimum wage have changed over the years. She said:

“When I started in 2019, one of my first placements was a graduate with 1 year (placement year) experience. They were offered an entry-level position at £23,000. The minimum wage in 2019 was £8.21, which is a salary of £16,000 on a 40-hour working week (for 21 - 24-year-olds). This year, I’m working with a graduate with a similar level of experience who is looking for £27,500.”

On the face of it, £4,500 seems a lot more for the same experience, however, in relation to the minimum wage, it’s not. The 2026 minimum wage is £12.71, which equates to £25,500 on a 40-hour working week, and that’s without factoring in the cost of getting a degree 7 years later. Inflation has driven these starting salaries higher, but graduates aren’t looking for the same rise on a starting salary. Instead, they want to have a conversation early on to understand what they need to do and learn to achieve a higher salary, and what those timelines are.

3. Wealth Isn’t Just Unequal, It’s Diverging

Over the last 30 years, wealth hasn’t just become unequal. It has separated into entirely different layers. You’ll have heard the phrase “the rich get richer and the poor get poorer”...but what does that mean, and how does it affect the younger generation's motivation to work?

With the development of AI and social media, the wealth distribution is more visible than ever. And it’s much easier to track the direction in which things are going.

Over the last 30 years, in simple terms, inequality has worsened. The bottom 90% of earners in the UK used to hold around 65% of the UK’s wealth. That figure is now closer to 50%, while the top groups continue to pull further ahead. Compare that with the top 0.1% of the population (the richest 70,000 people in the UK), and their share of wealth has roughly doubled over the same period.

What this creates isn’t just a gap, it’s a divergence. One group (the top 0.1%) sees wealth grow through assets, investments, and compounding returns, while the majority (bottom 90%) rely primarily on wages that haven’t kept pace. For younger generations, that gap can feel less like a ladder to climb and more like a ceiling they can’t reach.

At a basic level:

The bottom 90% rely on wages

The top groups rely more on assets

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These behave very differently.

Wages:

·         grow slowly

·         are tied to time worked

·         are affected heavily by inflation

Assets:

·         grow faster

·         compound over time

·         increase even without working

This creates a system where working harder does not necessarily close the gap, and people can feel that.

The “Middle Class” Illusion

We still think in terms of working, middle, and upper class, but these labels do not reflect reality like they used to.

Earning £50k to £60k might feel like being comfortably middle class. In terms of wealth distribution, however, it likely still places you in the bottom 90% bracket.

That is where the disconnect comes in.

People are doing everything they were told to do

·         get a job

·         work hard

·         earn more

But they are not seeing the level of progression they expected.

Progression still exists, but it can feel slow, with relatively small pay increases compared to the added responsibility. At the same time, people can clearly see wealth growing much faster at the top, which shifts expectations.

What This Does to Motivation

This is the part employers often notice.

If employees believe that:

·         working harder will not significantly improve their position

·         the biggest financial gains come from things they cannot access, such as assets or ownership

·         effort is not translating into meaningful progression

Then motivation looks different.

Not gone, just redirected.

People become:

·         more open to new opportunities

·         more focused on pay, progression, and benefits

And that can come across as a lack of drive.

What Employers Should Really Be Thinking About

Instead of asking:

“Why aren’t younger people as driven?”

A better question is:

“How do we build an environment where effort matches reward and individuals’ ambition?”

That could look like:

·         clearer progression

·         more visible reward structures (this isn’t just money)

·         pay aligned to responsibility

·         Clear and strong communication, and an environment that encourages people to give feedback and share their thoughts, ideas and frustrations

·         reducing unnecessary friction (travel, workload imbalance)

Final Thought

This isn’t a criticism of employers. It’s not a defence of younger workers either. It’s simply an observation. The world has changed, and behaviour is changing with it.

It’s a two-way street. Employers need to create and foster environments built on trust, communication, and collaboration. Employees, in turn, need to engage with that environment, understand decisions, and be willing to have open conversations.

If you want motivated people, regardless of generation, you don’t just need to find them. You need to create the conditions where motivation actually makes sense.

That means building systems where employees understand what they need to do to reach the next pay bracket or promotion. It also means recognising that people value feedback, whether it’s positive or constructive.

Because ultimately, motivation doesn’t just come from the individual. It comes from the environment they’re part of.

Once you truly understand where motivation and demotivation comes from, you’re not just reacting to problems, you’re building a culture that drives performance, rewards effort, and keeps people engaged.