Why Do Millennials Leave?
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Published:
Oct 17, 2019
Keywords:
Gen Y, jobs, leave, millennials, turnover
Main Article Content
Abstract
Millennials, also known as Gen Yers, are a unique generation, different from their predecessors in many ways, particularly in their short-term commitments and organizational stays. Reputed to be a generation with extremely high turnover rates as a result of job-hopping, this has proven to be extremely costly and frustrating to organizations. The purpose of this study was to have a closer look at the employment history of Millennials in Bangkok, Thailand. It also investigated the personal reasons behind job changes and, more importantly, the typical factors behind Millennial exits. A total of 30 working Millennials participated in a 30 to 45-minute structured, face-to-face in-depth interviews over a period of four months. The results of the study indicated that the top four most cited Personal Reasons for Changing Jobs and Factors behind Millennial Exits were the same: (1) The job itself, (2) the need for higher compensation, (3) no career growth and learning opportunities, and (4) an unfavorable organizational culture. The results also indicated that there were many similarities in the behavior of Millennial turnover behavior in Thailand with those reported elsewhere in Western-based literature.
Article Details
Section
Research Articles
Copyright: Asia-Pacific International University reserve exclusive rights to publish, reproduce and distribute the manuscript and all contents therein.
References
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Aruna, M., & Anitha, J. (2016). Employee retention enablers: Generation Y employees. SCMS Journal of Indian Management, 12(3), 94.
Axten, C. (2015). Millennials at work. Defense AT&L, 44(2), 50–54. Retrieved from https://apps.dtic.mil/dtic/tr/ fulltext/u2/a620591.pdf
Bye, D. (2018). Beyond stereotypes: How to manage & motivate millennials. HR Specialist, 16(3), 7. Retrieved from https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx? direct=true&db=bth&AN=128157916&site=ehost-live
Chappell, L. (2012). Attention to retention. Automotive News, 87(6539), 3. Retrieved from https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=bth&AN=82973235&site=ehost-live
Creswell, J. (2008). Educational research: Planning, conducting, and evaluating quantitative and qualitative research (3rd ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education, Inc.
Dial back high turnover rates. (2010). Communication Briefings, 29(10), 5. Retrieved from www.briefingsmedia group.com
Ellis, R. K. (2013). Meeting Millennials’ expectations. T+D Magazine, 67(7), 18. Retrieved from https://www.td.org/ magazines/td-magazine/meeting-millennials-expectations
Erwin, A. (2009). Millennials at work: How to implement the Millennial work style. Campus Activities Programming, 42(1), 10–13. Retrieved from https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=ehh&AN=39886553 &site=ehost-live
Fallon, T. (2009). Retain and motivate the next generation: 7 ways to get the most out of your millennial workers. Supervision, 70(5), 5–7. Retrieved from https://yellowedge.files.wordpress.com/2009/05/retainand motivate .pdf
Fox, A. (2011). Mixing it up. (Cover story). HR Magazine, 56(5), 22–27. Retrieved from https://www.shrm.org/hr-today/news/hr-magazine/pages/0511fox.aspx
Francis, R. (2018). FW company caffeinates millennials as they co-work. Fort Worth Business Press, 30(19), 4. Retrieved from https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=bwh&AN=130540483&site=ehost-live
Frankel, L. (2016). Employee retention: Seven common-sense ways to keep your star Millennials. Employment Relations Today (Wiley), 42(4), 49–56. https://doi.org/10.1002/ert.21539
Fisher, A. (2015). Employees are happier at work, but plan to quit anyway. Fortune.Com, N.PAG. Retrieved from https://fortune.com/2015/05/12/happy-employees-quit-anyway/
Gagne, Y. (2018). Millennials in the corner Office. Fast Company, (229), 20. Retrieved from https://search. ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=bth&AN=132840078&site=ehost-live
Greenwood, A. (2016). The US labour challenge. ICIS Chemical Business, (4469), 1.
Gursoy, D., Maier, T., & Chi, C. (2008). Generational differences: An examination of work values and generational gaps in the hospitality workforce. International Journal of Hospitality Management, 27(3), 448–458. Retrieved from https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0278431907001223?via%3Dihub
Jackson, N. (2015, March). Office takeover. Business Officer, 48(10), 30–34. Retrieved from https://www. ihrimpublications.com/WSR_Online_Archives/Meagan%20Johnson-WSR_MAR2015web.pdf
Jalnawala, C. (2018). Unlocking the potential. Human Capital Magazine, 21(11), 40–41. Retrieved from https://www.magzter.com/preview/1872/271996
Jauhar, J., Chan, S., & Rahim, N. (2017). The impact of reward and transformational leadership on the intention to quit of Generation Y employees in oil and gas industry: Moderating role of job satisfaction. Global Business & Management
Research, 9(4), 426–441. Retrieved from https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=bth&AN=127011696&site=ehost-live
Kowske, B., Rasch, R., & Wiley, J. (2010). Millennials’ (lack of) attitude problem: An empirical examination of generational effects on work attitudes. Journal of Business & Psychology, 25(2), 265–279. doi.org/10.1007/s10869-010-9171-8
Larkin, C. (2019). Thai military service for dual citizens). Retrieved from https://www.thaicitizenship.com/thai-military-service/
Lawson Williams National Staff Turnover Survey (2018). Staff turnover - the forces at play and current New Zealand trends. HRNZ News. Retrieved from https://hrnz.org.nz/news/single?tx_news_pi1%5Baction%5D=detail&tx news_pi1%5Bcontroller%5D=News&tx_news_pi1%5Bnews%5D=119&cHash=c203dfe03f46f5d959c0293a31f35a6c
Mihalca, L. (2018). Job attribute preferences of Millennials. Managerial Challenges of the Contemporary Society, 11(2), 102–106. Retrieved from https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=bth&AN= 133620009&site=ehost-live
Millennials at Work. (2015). BizEd, 14(2), 14. Retrieved from https://bized.aacsb.edu/articles/2015/03/millennials-at-work
Merriam, S., & Tisdell, E. (2016). Qualitative Research: A guide to design and implementation (4th ed.). San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.
Nickell, S. (2014, June). Millennials value personal development in the workplace. FurnitureToday, 38(43), 48. Retrieved from https://www.furnituretoday.com/article/489389-millennials-value-personal-development-workplace/.
Plew, S. (2013). Retaining young talent in your organization. Business People, 26(9), 82. Retrieved from https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx? direct=true&db=bth&AN=90228475&site=ehost-live
Pyrillis, R. (2017). Mental health takes on new meaning for Millennials at work. Workforce, 96(3), 18. Retrieved from https://www.workforce.com/2017/05/16/mental-health-takes-new-meaning-millennials-work/
Reuteman, R. (2015). Generation gaps. Entrepreneur, 43(3), 42–48.
Schawbel, D., & Bisharat, J. (2019). Businesses need Millennials if they are to remain competitive. TD: Talent Development, 69(1), 22. Retrieved from https://www.td.org/magazines/td-magazine/businesses-need-millennials-if-they-are-to-remain-competitive
Siegfried Jr., R. L. (2008). Mapping a Career Path for Attracting & Retaining Talent. Financial Executive, 24(9), 52–55. Retrieved from https://go.gale.com/ps/anonymous?id=GALE%7CA189068770&sid=googleScholar&v= 2.1&it=r&linkaccess=fulltext&issn=08954186&p=AONE&sw=w
Ware, B. (2014). Stop the Gen Y revolving door. T+D, 68(5), 58–63. Retrieved from https://www.td.org/magazines/ td-magazine/stop-the-gen-y-revolving-door
Zikmund, W., Griffin, M., & Babin, B., & Carr, J. (2013). Business research method (9th ed.). Mason, OH: South-Western, Cengage Learning.