"[Resume Genius](https://resumegenius.com/blog/job-hunting/hiring-trends-survey) asked 625 U.S. hiring managers which generation is the most challenging to work with, and 45% pointed to Gen Z, the generation born between 1997 and 2012. What’s more, 50% of Gen Z hiring managers admitted that their own generation is the most difficult to manage.

Perhaps surprisingly, baby boomers—who have been caught in their fair share of criticism too for not being in touch with today’s workers after buying [McMansions in the suburbs](https://fortune.com/2024/04/08/american-comedian-tim-dillon-hypocrisy-baby-boomers-property-advice-gen-z-millennials-mcmansions-retire/) on one wage and then [refusing to retire](https://fortune.com/europe/2024/04/05/baby-boomer-late-gen-x-men-unretiring-cant-afford-retirement-standard-life/)—were voted as the easiest to manage."

"While 45% of those surveyed described Gen Z as the most challenging to work with, this dropped to 26% for millennials, 13% for Gen X, and 9% for baby boomers."

"Last year, the Oscar-winning actress Jodie Foster complained that Gen Zers don’t show up to work until [10:30 a.m.,](https://fortune.com/2024/01/08/jodie-foster-gen-z-annoying-to-work-with/) and an MIT interviewer blasted the generation for always [“being late.”](https://fortune.com/2023/11/15/mit-interviewer-gen-z-late-research-deadlines/?utm_source=search&utm_medium=suggested_search&utm_campaign=search_link_clicks) And a viral debate popped up when one CEO vented his gripe with a Gen Z job candidate who refused to do a 90-minute task because it “[looked like a lot of work](https://fortune.com/2024/04/29/gen-z-job-seeker-refused-90-minute-task-recruiter-slammed/).”"

Gen Z really are the hardest to work with—even managers of their own generation say they’re difficult. (Fortune, 2025)