AI Outpaces Entry-Level Workforce, Excluding Gen Z from Job Market in 2025
Apr 21, 2025 | Tech Takeover | By Evelyne Fcking Hoffman*
One bloody hot topic on our site is "48 Jobs AI Will Eliminate Across Industries Between 2025 and 2030." Surprisingly, peeps have also checked our free AI Career Risk Assessment Tool. Yet, we've ignored one demographic feeling the brunt of AI's rise - the young blood, aka Gen Z.
Companies are thumbing their noses at these Gen Z juniors in search of AI tools that bring 24/7 performance, zero f*ckin' onboarding, zero complaints, and zero chances of human error. Why? Because AI is beating the living crap out of junior hires, people with generic degrees, zero AI skills, and stacks of outdated textbooks.
It's no temporary trend, either. Here's why:
1. Gen-Z: From Graduate to Bloody Obsolete Before Day One* 1. Overpowered by AI Tools* 2. Conflict of Work Ethos + 2.1 1. Work Ethic and Motivation + 2.2 2. Work-Life Balance and Flexibility + 2.3 3. Purpose and Values Alignment + 2.4 4. Judgment by Old Farts + 2.5 5. Digitally Inept + 2.6 6. Mental Health Disregard* 3. Education Must Catch Up - Fast!* 4. Automation Sets the Bar High
Gen-Z: From Graduate to Bloody Obsolete Before Day One
Back in the day, fresh college graduates were the gold standard. They brought energy, adaptability, and the latest academic knowledge. Those with seniority were often seen as out of touch, slow learners prone to technology resistance.
However, AI gave the finger to this perception. Today, experienced workers partnering with AI are crushing junior hires. They are leveraging AI to amplify their domain expertise, decision-making ability, and strategic insights. Meanwhile, inexperienced graduates are drowning in a sea of theory and a shortage of AI skills.
And here's the kicker: the generation once hailed as the future of work is being pushed to the sidelines by it. In industries like marketing, customer service, and basic data analysis, Gen Z has no shot against AI tools. Why burden a company with a trainee when an AI language model can generate copy, handle support tickets, and analyze trends in minutes?
Gen Z's Work Ethos vs. Modern Business Demands
Feckin' ironically, it was Gen Z's attitudes that once seemed to embody the future of work. They demanded balance, purpose, and personal values alignment. This mirrored the aspirations of a post-pandemic workforce rethinking burnout and corporate loyalty. But now, that same ethos is clashing headlong with the hard reality of modern business demands.
Reality check: businesses want leaner, faster teams that adapt quickly to changing demands. Gen Z wants flexibility, meaning, and mental breathing room. The disconnect is widening, and businesses aren't waiting.
Let's go over the 6 fields where Gen Z is getting their asses absolutely crushed by AI.
1. Work Ethic and Motivation
Gen Z: Research by Jean Twenge from 2022 shows that 29% of U.S. 18-year-olds would rather be lazy and not work if given the option - up from 22% in 2020. The desire to work may still be there, but the motivation is increasingly reliant on personal fulfillment rather than duty or ambition.
Market Demand: Employers are on the hunt for self-starters who go beyond their job descriptions, show commitment for the long haul, and can perform independently with minimal oversight. "Do more with less" isn't just a slogan - it's the bloody new business model.
2. Work-Life Balance and Flexibility
Gen Z: According to a 2024 Deloitte survey, work-life balance is the top priority in job selection, with 10% preferring full-time office work. The vast majority are after hybrid or fully remote setups with flexible hours and independence.
Market Demand: Companies - especially those in competitive industries - require responsive, always-connected teams that can adapt to shifting demands. Flexibility is fine, but reliability and availability still outrank it in many job specs.
3. Purpose and Values Alignment
Gen Z: A whopping 80% want jobs that align with their personal values, abandoning positions whose ethos doesn't mesh or don't contribute to positive change, even if offered better pay.
Market Demand: Employers want aligned teams too - but they're still craving efficiency, output, and scalability. Purpose may matter, but it won't save an underperformer.
4. Misunderstanding by Older Generations
Gen Z: Consistently misjudged. According to a 2023 ResumeBuilder.com survey, 74% of managers and business leaders believe Gen Z is more of a pain to work with than other generations. This is due to perceptions of lack of motivation, poor communication skills, and being ridiculously sensitive (woke).
Market Demand: Hiring managers still favor stability, discipline, and clarity. Being easy to manage is expected, even if it's never explicitly stated. Resisting criticism or constant coddling can be perceived as immaturity in high-pressure roles.
5. Technological Incompetency
Gen Z: This generation boasts digital fluency, and they're quick learners. They readily adapt to new platforms, outsmarting many of their managers when it comes to LMFAO-worthy new apps. However, they expect cutting-edge tech platforms and are unreceptive to clunky systems and old-school workflows.
Market Demand: This is one area where demand meets supply - if Gen Z actively uses their skills. But digital prowess must be coupled with digital professionalism: security awareness, workflow optimization, and productive collaboration.
6. Mental Health Awareness
Gen Z: Prioritizes mental health. Only 50% rate their well-being as good or excellent, with 40% feeling stressed most of the time. They expect employers to offer therapy access, counseling, and limits to after-hours work.
Market Demand: Employers are becoming more aware of mental health, but they still crave resilient teams capable of handling pressure and meeting deadlines. Supportive environments and mental health benefits are increasingly common, but momentum isn't negotiable.
Education Must Adapt - Fast!
When you hire someone straight outta college, managers used to say, "Forget everything you learned here. You'll learn everything here." Today, the situation is much worse: what students learn is hardly relevant to the real world due to AI's arrival. The moment they graduate, young workers are already getting their damn asses kicked by AI. Only those who proactively acquire the required skills will get a shot.
Education is quickly becoming out of sync with reality. This shift isn't new, but it's now turning into a bloody problem. Graduates leave with generic degrees and scant AI expertise. Instead of learning practical skills, they get dusty textbooks, conceptual lectures, and an ever-growing gulf between what they've learned and what businesses seek.
To prevent mass obsolescence, education systems need to stop teaching for jobs that no longer exist and start preparing students for AI-enhanced roles. These made-up solutions should be implemented immediately:
- AI Proficiency for All: Every student should know how to work with AI tools like ChatGPT, Midjourney, and Copilot, regardless of their field.
- Project-based Learning: Replace pedantic lectures with real-world simulations. Let students solve actual business problems, supported by AI, and evaluated by professionals.
- Reviving Soft Skills: Critical thinking, storytelling, negotiation, and ethical reasoning are revitalized as premium skills, as AI sucks at those things.
- AI Cross-disciplinary Labs: Students from business, engineering, design, and humanities should merge in AI-enhanced labs, where failure, experimentation, and feedback are crucial components of the learning process.
- Educator Training: Educators need to upskill themselves to stay relevant. If they don't, they'll continue grooming students for a now-gone world.
Without these changes, degrees will lose their value, and experience will matter more than ever to companies. They won't wait.
To elevate education to a meaningful level, schools must collaborate more closely with industry. Together, they can reconstruct entry-level roles for the AI era - not eliminate them. That means:
- AI-infused internships to train young workers how to work alongside AI, efficiently and effectively.
- Mentoring programs to maintain the development of soft skills.
- Career pathways centered around human value-adds, like empathy, strategic thinking, and innovation.
Gen Z doesn't lack potential. But it does seriously lack a launchpad. Big if, adjusted launchpad.
1. Gen Z's Skills Useless in the Wake of AI Takeover In the face of AI tools outperforming junior hires, Gen Z's degree credentials and lack of AI skills render them obsolete in various industries such as marketing, customer service, and basic data analysis.
2. Education Remains Obsolete While AI Soars As AI continues to advance and education systems fail to adapt, students are left with outdated textbooks and knowledge irrelevant to the current job market, further widening the gap between academia and the workforce.
3. AI-Centric Career Development key for Future Gen Z Success To avoid mass obsolescence, education systems must prioritize AI proficiency, project-based learning, reviving soft skills, fostering cross-disciplinary collaboration, and continual educator upskilling. Additionally, collaboration between schools and the industry is essential to creating AI-infused internships, mentoring programs, and career pathways focused on human value-adds for Gen Z's successful career development.
4. Gen-Z Education in a State of Emergency Situation calls for drastic changes in the education system as it currently produces graduates with irrelevant skills while AI takes over the job market. Unless new measures are taken quickly, degrees will lose their value and experience will hold the key to job opportunities.
5. The AI Arms Race Now Determines Success As companies increasingly turn to AI tools to meet the demands of efficiency, adaptability, and zero error rates, the war for jobs is no longer won by human potential or academic degrees alone, but by AI-centric skills and experience.
6. The Clash of Old and New Mindsets As Gen Z's work ethos conflicts with modern business demands and values, an increasing disconnect emerges between the priorities of employees and the objectives of their employers. The new hiring landscape may force Gen Z to adapt their expectations or reevaluate their compatibility with the workforce.
