As they enter the labor market in larger numbers, many Gen Z employees have earned their cohort the unenviable reputation of being aloof, averse to taking orders, insufficiently trained, and prone to blankly staring in ways that freak older colleagues out. But if people born between 1995 and 2010 resent that criticism as harsh, they should bend an ear to hear what their bosses are saying about even younger Generation Alpha members, who’ve been deemed unprepared for the workforce many are already seeking to enter.
Gen Zers who recently completed college face the challenge of overcoming their cohort’s vexing workplace reputation as they struggle to land a job. They’re also finding employers generally aren’t hiring much anymore — and are increasingly prioritizing skills and experience over diplomas when they do. Despite these hurdles, it’s worse for the youngest Gen Zers and the oldest members of Generation Alpha, born between 2010–2024. They’re having trouble finding employment for an even worse reason: Bosses say they aren’t capable of doing any available jobs.
In fact, according to a recent survey by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and College Board, 84 percent of the 500 participating hiring managers said “most high school students are not prepared to enter the workforce.” Perhaps even worse, 80 percent of those respondents said the most recent crop of high school graduates were even more clueless about applying for, earning, and effectively performing a job than previous generations.
That likely strikes both disbelief and fear into the hearts of the 60 percent of managers who told a poll last year they’d already fired Gen Z hires for being unable to get with the program at their businesses. Another 75 percent said “some or all of the recent college graduates they hired this year were unsatisfactory.” Wait until Generation Alpha teens straight out of high school come their way asking for a job.
A further complication appears in the findings of the latest U.S. Chamber of Commerce New Hire Readiness Report 2025. They suggest current high school students are drawing lessons from the time and money Gen Zers spent on college — only to find those degrees increasingly less useful in getting a job. Not illogically, many of those younger students are no longer bothering to consider higher education as an effective bridge for crossing into the workforce, and are trying to dive right in as teens.
It turns out there’s a problem with that, too.
The same hiring managers who no longer consider college degrees as important in making recruitment decisions as they had for decades still view them as immeasurably better for preparing future employees than no qualifications at all.
“(T)hey view trade school or four-year college graduates as much more prepared to enter the workforce,” the report said of respondents comparing those degree holders to people trying to find work straight out of high school. “Yet, today the majority of high school students are not going directly to college after graduation.”
Instead, they’re coming straight at employers, many of whom are rattled by the youngest wave of job applicants.
So what can high school students do to avoid being underskilled and inexperienced to the point they can’t land a job — or going thousands of dollars into debt to finance a college education that’s no longer a fast track to a career? And what are employers advising to avoid both those scenarios?
Survey participants urged those youths to seek out opportunities to engage with the workforce and acquire foundational experience in other ways. Those include internships or apprenticeships, as well as trade schools that respondents considered even more effective for developing early career skills than four-year colleges.
They also propose remedial solutions before students finish high school.
Fully 92 percent of hiring managers surveyed urged educators to introduce more business classes at the high school level. They suggested those should focus on teaching students skill sets that develop critical thinking and problem solving — tools 94 percent of respondents called essential in selecting potential new hires.
Respondents said new or improved high school business courses should emphasize effective communications, decision making, and teamwork abilities, which 98 percent, 97 percent, and 94 percent of respondents respectively described as important.
Regardless of whether students learn about business in high school, trade schools, or colleges, 96 percent of respondents stressed the importance of teaching financial literacy to young people before they enter the labor market. Among those skills survey participants specified most as necessary for for entry-level work candidates to have are a working knowledge of taxes, net income, and budgeting; saving and investing; and borrowing, credit, and debt management.
The value of helping high school students become better versed and experienced with business practices goes beyond ensuring company managers won’t have to face a new generation of employees even more difficult to integrate than many Gen Zers have been, the report noted.
“This matters because high school students are such a large percentage of entry-level employees entering the workforce,” its conclusion said. “As a result, early talent preparation falls on employers to address, resulting in increased cost and time, or is not prioritized, negatively impacting workers’ livelihoods. An unprepared workforce can cause ripple effects throughout the economy and society.”
Bruce Crumley
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