According to RCG (2018), work ethics are values on the moral virtues of diligence and hard work. Values are things that you believe in firmly, something that you hold in high regard. This paper will argue that work ethic in today’s society has declined. In the school setting, a solid work ethic is also appearing to be dwindling in the setting of the schools. For instance, schoolchildren today do not spend enough time preparing for their exams and completing homework assignments. On the work ethic in jobs, some people want to make a lot of money without working hard or investing much of their time into their jobs. However, this attitude does not apply to every society member. Many people invest much time and effort to earn their money or grades through hard work and diligence. Their work ethic is admirable and is something that they should be proud of.
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It is evident and true the work ethic of today is different compared to the past. Schawbel (2011) indicated a close examination of the American workplace of today is not comparable with the American workplace of the 1930s to the 1990s. It can be seen that America lost sight of the virtues comprising the work ethic, which was instrumental in building the country. The emerging workforce in America brings some unique personality traits and skill sets into the labor pool. The challenge to the millennials is they do not always want to work, and when they agree, their working terms do not always concur with the terms of the employers. In most instances, the young workers report working some minutes late, wearing pajama bottoms, flip-flops, and T-shirts. They then start fidgeting through the shift until things start slowing down then they start texting their friends or updating their social media from their smartphones (Schawbel, 2011). These sentiments are also echoed by Winget (2007). He pointed out that several workers today spend much of that time taking long lunch breaks and surfing the internet. However, several young employees in this generation will also say they carry their blackberries and smartphones along with them all the time, and their social life and work life are intertwined as compared to their parents, who will depart from work at the end of the working day and stop their work there.
In most instances, these ambitious and bright new employees would perceive work as something to be avoided or as a necessary evil that needs to be endured before landing a spot on a reality TV show, winning a lottery, getting a high-paying office accompanied with a corner office, or getting cushy at an expense account. These arguments are supported by a survey done by Pew Research Center in February 2010. The survey findings proved that today’s generation does not identify with their work ethic. The study findings indicated the millennial generation has a distinctive and unique identity. Ethics was pointed out as one of the distinctive characteristics by at least 10% of the 3 older generations (Schawbel, 2011).
According to RCG (2018), many people in the society of today no longer understand the meaning of hard work. Individuals focus on the benefits of their work to the employer. Instead, the majority are entirely focused on what their work will do for them. Driven by the natural tendencies of laziness and greed, the only reason many go to work is for the benefits they will accrue from that job with a minimum amount of effort used. It has been stated, “nothing really works unless an individual will instead be doing something else.” Many people in today’s society have never been taught or have forgotten the benefits of working hard. People of this generation no longer get or enjoy work and normally wish they were doing something else somewhere. These assertions mirror a narrative by Winget (2007), who talked about his father’s experience, who worked for 47 years for the same company and never questioned whether he was happy. He was going to work and getting his pay, which was the deal he signed when he joined the workforce. Times have significantly changed in the past century. It was the great-grandparents of this country who underwent the two world wars. And they also understood the significance of working hard. They also understood if they did not work hard, they would not survive.
In conclusion, today’s work ethic seems different compared to the work ethic in the past. As pointed out by Winget (2007 <paperpile.com/b/eg3SHe/TCUA>), many employees in the society of today spend much of that time surfing the internet while at work. Their social and work lives are interwoven, making them not do their job during working hours. Therefore, they carry their social life into the workplace, making the companies they work for suffer, and then carry their work home making their families suffer. As candidly suggested, when you are at work, work. When you are at home, enjoy yourself.
*References*
RCG. (2018). Missing Today: A Strong Work Ethic. Rcg.org. Retrieved April 4, 2018, from rcg.org/youth/articles/0802-mtaswe.html
Schawbel, D. (2011, December 21). Reviving Work Ethic in America. Retrieved April 4, 2018, from www.forbes.com/sites/danschawbel/2011/12/21/reviving-work-ethic-in-america/
Winget, L. (2007). *It’s Called Work for a Reason!: Your Success is Your Own Damn Fault*. Penguin.
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