- It used to pay to switch jobs—but now Gen Z’s career strategy is down the drain. A new report from the Atlanta Fed shows that workers who stayed put in their jobs last month saw a 4.6% wage increase, compared to those who switched roles and made a measly 0.2% more.
Gen Z has been fast-tracking their way up the career ladder by job-hopping. But the shortcut to bigger paychecks and snazzy job titles has lost its edge. Now, staying loyal pays virtually just as much as jumping ship.
Workers who stayed put at their jobs received a 4.6% wage bump in January and February, while those who switched gigs only received a marginally higher increase of 4.8%, according to new data from the Atlanta Fed.
The financial opportunity gap is closing fast: the salary difference between people who stay in their jobs and those who switch is currently at the lowest level it’s been in 10 years.
Just two years ago, job hoppers got a 7.7% wage increase compared to the 5.5% hike for those who stayed.
This can be jarring to professionals who have long been told that switching jobs was the best way to rise to the next tax bracket. And there are a few reasons why things have changed; an uncertain white-collar job market has left many afraid to take the jump, with high competition and shrinking options; employees are experiencing salary deflation, being offered less for doing the same job at different companies; and wage increases have stagnated in industries like technology.
CEOs at Cisco, Walmart, Disney, and more highlight that playing the long game can pay off
Gen X and baby boomers were once told the best way to succeed is by staying at one employer for many years; their loyalty would entail a pension, and a better chance at climbing the company totem pole. But as benefits wane and promotions are clinched, leaving for greener pastures became commonplace.
About 75% of workers ditch their employer before even receiving a promotion, according to an ADP report on payroll data. Gen Z, in particular, are keen on the strategy—about 83% self-identified as “job-hoppers,” according to a 2023 report from ResumeLab. And up until this point, it’s been paying off. An H&R Block report found that in 2023, nearly one-third of Gen Z changed jobs, with 35% making the move explicitly to secure higher wages.
Job-hopping has become normalized, despite how much CEOs hate it. About 41% of workers in general think switching gigs every two to three years is acceptable, and 56% of Gen Z believe the same, according to 2024 data from Resume Genius. Yet leaders are still adamant that loyalty will be rewarded—take it from Cisco’s new U.K. chief Sarah Walker, who told Fortune the 25 years she spent climbing the ranks at the $17.7 billion company were well worth it.
“You just need to be patient in the journey,” she said. “As a society, we’ve moved on to where everything is immediate, and that does bleed into people’s expectations of how quickly progression should be made and the pressure that people put on themselves to say, ‘I have to get promoted within a year and if I haven’t, then that means I’m not on the right trajectory, and therefore I’m going to go elsewhere and see if I can get there any quicker.’”
Read more from Fortune
She’s not alone. Many other Fortune 500 CEOs have similarly earned their stripes after dedicating years to the same company. Walmart’s Doug McMillion, Disney’s Bob Iger, HP’s Enrique Lores, and General Motors’ Mary Barra all worked their way up to the corner office. If workers keep their eye on the ball at their employer, good things can naturally reel in.
“Don’t take your current job for granted,” McMillion said in an interview with Stratechery last year. “The next job doesn’t come if you don’t do the one you’ve got well.”
With job-hopping no longer the golden ticket to pay rises and promotions, Gen Zers may need to rethink their career strategy—in any case, loyalty will grow increasingly valuable as they move up the ladder.
As Ashley Constable, a senior managing director at executive recruiting firm Robert Half, told Fortune: “If someone’s been an early job-hopper, that’s okay. But as they grow, that’s when you need to see more longevity in terms of tenure within the organization.”
