Post Reports In the job market, Gen Z is cooked
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Aug 13, 2025 Taylor Telford, a business reporter at The Washington Post, dives into the struggles Generation Z faces in the job market amid rising layoffs and AI advancements. She highlights the paradox of entry-level roles requiring extensive experience, creating a bottleneck for young job seekers. Telford discusses the shift towards trade schools as a result of the pandemic, emphasizing practical skills over traditional degrees. With insights on navigating AI in job applications, she provides a glimmer of hope to Gen Z by focusing on resilience and creative networking strategies.
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Hiring Market Mirrors Post-Recession Scarcity
- The current hiring landscape is one of the toughest since the 2008 recession due to economic pressure and shrinking headcounts.
- AI and post-pandemic retrenchment make companies hire far less for entry-level roles than before.
AI Changes Workflows More Than It Fires People
- AI isn't wholesale replacing jobs yet but it changes workflows and reduces the need for headcount in repeatable tasks.
- Companies are cautious and often pause hiring while they figure out how to deploy AI and cut costs.
Corporate Culture Shift Toward Lean Productivity
- Corporate culture shifted from rewarding headcount growth to praising lean productivity since the pandemic.
- That cultural shift removed many natural entry points that previously helped new graduates break into companies.