There are many disagreements between Boomers, Millennials and Gen-Zers; where do we even start??
Many of these differences can be traced back to age or different parenting styles. However, one employee recently theorized why Boomer bosses can be so problematic and frustrating for younger people.
One employee claimed that Boomer bosses are difficult to deal with because of their money mentality
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One millennial employee posted on an online forum describing their experience having lunch with an older friend. “I had lunch with a wealthy Boomer yesterday and he was talking about a mutual acquaintance named Dustin who was one of the larger employers in our community,” they said.
According to the employee, Dustin is not exactly a good or well-liked person. “His abusive behavior towards his staff was legendary,” they said. “Horseful verbal abuse every week, being verbally abused in front of colleagues, but fun in public.”
“The people I knew who worked for him told me they were suicidal, had panic attacks Sunday night and all wanted to leave,” the worker wrote. But that’s not what caught their Boomer friend, who “mentioned how successful and wealthy Dustin was and the great strides he was making in business.”
The worker was shocked that their friend would say something like that. After all, Dustin had a reputation for being cruel. Although he was a successful businessman, everyone knew about the heinous behavior that happened behind the scenes.
That’s when the online forum poster realized something surprising:
Boomer bosses believe wealth is a virtue and use it to excuse bad behavior
“I learned from my Boomer friend that his generation believes wealth is a virtue,” they said. “Basically, being rich is an excuse for all the bad behavior or underhanded things you did to get there. It automatically makes you a good person.”
The worker’s friend suggested that “money was the reward for hard work and good decisions. Virtually nothing was more important than money.”
To top it all off, the Boomer friend didn’t understand why the worker’s opinion of Dustin mattered. “I was in no position to criticize Dustin because he was now insanely rich, and I am not; therefore, any observation or opinion I had was not valid,” they said. “Because if I was smart and worked hard, I would be rich too.”
It’s certainly true that Boomers are one of the wealthiest generations. In reality, Nasdaq reports this that “more than half of America’s wealth belongs to baby boomers.”
Boomers could face a financial reckoning
However, National Business Capital CEO Joe Camberato suggested that younger generations could overtake Boomers when it comes to wealth. “What’s intriguing is that newer generations may have the potential to surpass this,” says Camberato. “Keep in mind that baby boomers were born between 1946 and 1964, so they are currently in the 59 to 77 age range. They have amassed this wealth over decades.”
Online commentators certainly seemed to believe that Boomers are in for a rude awakening. “These people need to know that they cannot survive without the people they think are less than them,” one person wrote.
“It will be difficult to get through to a group of people who are not used to the consequences that the tactics and attitudes they have used and possess are toxic and actively harming communities,” another person noted.
There are clearly some major differences between Boomers and younger generations, which have led to a lot of animosity. Perhaps it is time for all generations to look beyond these differences and recognize each other’s contributions to society, rather than just focusing on the negatives.
Mary-Faith Martinez is a writer for YourTango covering entertainment, news and human interest topics.
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