Generation X’ers’ values and how they perceive the New Zealand labour market

Abstract

My research was based around skilled Generation X employees and what they value in long-term employment relationships. Initially my research was looking at employee retention in organisations, I began an initial literature review on this topic but was swamped with information and found that I would need to narrow my research. One area that was not well understood in the literature was employee retention methods for different age groups. This prompted me to look at Generation X and what they value in employment relationships, as away to understand how to better suit their needs and hopefully illustrate the ways in which they can be retained. I also believed that understanding the New Zealand labour market and illustrating how things like the brain drain, the new psychological contact, and the idea of mobile careers maybe having an affect on organisations and individuals was important and may in some way could be tied to Generation X'ers values in employment relationships. I began my research with a literature review on what Generation X employees are said to value in employment relationships, the main themes that were illustrated by the literature were such things as feedback, training and development, balanced lifestlyes, and fun. I also reviewed literature on issues I thought were relevant to the New Zealand labour Market including the brain drain, the new psychological contract and the notion of mobile careers Once my literature review was complete I established a number of questions I wished to find answers to including: 1. Do Generation X'ers and their managers perceive that the brain drain, the new psychological contract, and the idea of mobile careers are pertinent issues to managing/retaining Generation X? 2. Do Generation X'ers and their managers perceive that the brain drain, the new psychological contract, and the idea of mobile careers exists in the context of the New Zealand labour market? 3. What effect do they perceive these things have on the New Zealand labour market? 4. Do these things affect them personally? 5. What do graduate Generation X workers value in long-term employment relationships? 6. Do these Generation X employees perceive the organisation they work for as being able to understand their values?