Millennials pessimistic about their finances and wealth prospects, Deloitte says

Economic optimism among young people is at record lows around the world, according to a new research.

Deloitte’s 2019 Millennial Survey, published Monday, found that younger generations are not particularly satisfied with their financial situations, jobs, or governments.

Researchers from the management consultancy surveyed 13,416 millennials across 42 countries and 3,009 Gen Z respondents across 10 countries. Millennials included in the study were born between 1983 and 1994, while the Gen Z respondents were born between 1995 and 2002.

Among the younger generations, economic optimism dipped to its lowest level on record, with only a quarter of respondents expecting their country’s economy to rally in the coming year. Since Deloitte’s survey began six years ago, economic optimism has fallen below 40%, and has stood at 45% for the past two years.

Meanwhile, just over half of millennials said they thought their personal financial situations will worsen or stay the same in the coming year, while 43% expected an improvement.

Traditional “success markers” such as having children or buying a home did not top young people’s priorities list – instead, most young people wanted to travel and see the world.

Earning a high salary and being wealthy was the second most common ambition among young people, with 52% of the survey’s respondents citing it as one of their goals. But when asked which ambitions were achievable, respondents ranked achieving wealth and a high income at the bottom of the list, with 40% saying it was unobtainable.

Two-thirds of millennials who wanted to reach senior levels in their careers said it was achievable, while three in four of those who dreamed of buying a home were confident they would be able to do so.

When it came to opinions on the workplace, 46% of those surveyed said they believed the altering nature of work would make it more difficult to change jobs. Meanwhile, 70% thought they may only have a few of the skills required to succeed in the era of technology.

Millennials told Deloitte that businesses should be responsible for training employees to be prepared for the changing world of work. Gen Z, who were largely still in education or recent graduates, said this should be the responsibility of educational institutions.

“Millennials and Gen Zs have grown up in a unique moment in time impacting connectivity, trust, social mobility and work,” Michele Parmelee, Deloitte’s global chief talent officer, said in a press release Monday.

“As business leaders, we must continue to embrace the issues resonating most with these two generations, or risk losing out on talent in an increasingly competitive market,” she added.