Millennials and Generation Z Don’t Change Jobs Any More Than Boomers Did

Business Insider (04/08/25) Cox, Josie

Millennials (born between 1981 and 1996) and members of Generation Z (born 1997–2006) have contended with a reputation for being fickle employees, responsible for the decades-long decline in median job tenure. However, despite Millennials and Gen Z making up more than half of the workforce, data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics shows that median job tenure today is actually longer than it was in the 1980s when BLS first started tracking it.

Data from the Current Population Survey shows that about one-third of Baby Boomers (born 1946–1964) and members of Generation X (born 1965–1980) switched employers at age 20, compared with less than one-quarter of millennials and 20% of Gen Zers at the same age. The share of workers who have stayed with the same employer for over 20 years, meanwhile, is about the same as it was in 1983. Job tenure has been declining over the past decade, but it’s coming down from a historic peak in the early 2010s. There is even evidence that Millennials are less likely to switch jobs as frequently as Gen X and Boomers were in their youth.

Read More