You read from the news that some employers are having a low opinion of the local young people. They are viewed as less valuable due to their poor attitude. You are worried about this phenomenon and have therefore decided to write a letter to a local newspaper Hong Kong Post to voice your opinion. In your letter, explain why the view might be unfair to some young employees. You also express your concern for them and give advice to improve the situation. Sign your letter ‘Pat Li’. Do not write an address.
Dear Editor,
I am writing to express my views on local young employees. Recently, some employers are having a low opinion of the local young people. They are viewed as less valuable due to their poor attitude. However, it might be unfair to some young employees.
University graduates are now less valuable but it may not be the problem of students themselves. The number of university places has increased a lot over he years. According to a report by New Forum and New Youth Forum, two groups monitoring public policy, only 10.6 per cent of young people in 1993 had a university degree, compared to 47 per cent in 2013. Employers might not want to pay as much because there are so many more university graduates now than there used to be. This means they’ll work for lower salaries. This is why university graduates nowadays are less valuable.
Besides, although the majority of young employees are being labeled as having poor working attitude, there must be some hardworking and passionate young employees. The view is unfair to the employees who are willing to handle challenging tasks and seek responsibility. They are trying their best to finish the tasks they are responsible for. However, the mismatch between the types of degrees available for study and the jobs on offer may hinder their potential. Some people who graduate with a bachelor’s degree in business administration may end up working as a general office worker instead of taking up a managerial role that they were taught for at university. Because of lacking capable knowledge, this may lead to a poor performance and it is unfair to some young employees.
What can we do to improve this situation? Firstly, I suggest that the employers should abandon the preconception first. You cannot assume every young employee has poor working attitude and bad language and problem-solving skills. Employers should at least give certain chances to young employees as they are new to the industry and work environment. The young employees need help and the employers should not blame them at first. If they keep performing badly, it is understandable that the employees should face the consequence.
Moreover, if the young employees are performing well, employers may consider to assign them more challenging tasks. Since most young employees have got high education qualifications, they are assumed to be Theory Y employees according to McGregor’s theory. It assumes the Theory Y employees are willing to accept challenging tasks, seek responsibilities and gain a sense of achievement. They will be motivated if they can gain a sense of achievement and hence improving working attitude and productivity.
The aforementioned is my opinion on the recent views on young employees and I hope that the situation can be improved in the near future.
Yours faithfully
Pat Li