S
ecure long-term employment with benefits,
rising wages, affordable homes and the intro-
duction of super gave many baby boomers
the means to own a home and accumulate
wealth. But in just one generation things
arestartingtofray.
There’s no shortage of headlines reflecting it: “Under-
employmentofyoungpeopleisthehighestit’sbeenin
40 years”; “Millennials are the most unhappy about
workandlifeintheworld”;and“Fallinhomeowner-
ship threatens to sink Australia’s retirement system.”
It’s news to everyone – except millennials.
Associate professor Sarah Kaine, at the Centre for
Business and Social Innovation at UTS, says a number
of trends have come together to create a more insecure
work life. “You’ve got the platform economy, the gig
economy,peer-to-peersharing,whateveryouwantto
callit,thathasaparticulartypeofworkattachedtoit
whichisflexiblebutalsoprecarious.
“Then you have portfolio workers who are at the
topendofthelabourmarket,whogoaboutproviding
themselves with some security despite what looks like
an insecure form of work. Then there are the recent
graduateswhowilltakeunpaidinternships.Sothere’sa
conflation of trends and the result of all of them is, at least
temporarily,amoreinsecureemploymentrelationship.
“Add to that trying to get together enough money to
buyaplacesomewhereoreventryandrentinacapital
city.Idon’tenvyanymillennialfiguringouthowto
get through that maze of obstacles.” Everyone knows
someoneaffectedbyit.“Thereisprobablysomeone
youknowthathasbeenonrollingcontractsorisin
casual work and looking for more work and is under-
employed,” says Kaine. “It is such a prevalent situationJobs are
hard to
find and
property is
expensive
but there
are ways
for young
people to
get ahead
Beat
the
gen Y blues
STORY
VITA
PALESTRANTMY MONEYSURVIVAL GUIDE
that it would be unusual not to be touched by it.” From
thebabyboomerperspectiveit’sa“labourmarketthat
isunrecognisable,adifferentworld”.Arecentreportby
accounting firm Deloitte found millennials or generation
Y(bornbetween1982and1999)arepessimisticabout
their chances of owning a home. Only 8% believe they
will be better off than their parents and only 4% believe
they will be happier.BOOST YOUR INCOME
Adrian Raftery, associate professor at Deakin University
and course director of financial planning, encourages
millennials to be proactive. “They need to build their
résumé, and do extracurricular activities to make them
standoutandshowtheyareagoodteamplayeranda
good communicator. It’s what employers love.
“At work put in a solid effort so that you are the last
person the employer wants to get rid of. Show them you
are adding value to the business. With all that will come
opportunity...yourcasualjobmaybecomepermanent.
“Find ways of increasing your income. That may be
by doing extra study. You may need to upskill, maybe do
amaster’sdegreetogetyouintothehigher-payingjobs,
or be promoted more quickly and with that get a pay
increase.Alwayslooktocontinually improve yourself.”BUILDABUFFER
“The biggest thing for millennials is the risk of living
paychequetopaycheque,”saysDominiqueBergel-
Grant, a director and financial planner at Leapfrog
Financial. “The first thing to focus on is getting some
savings behind you so that if there is an emergency
you’ve got a cash buffer.
Understand what your costs are to keep a roof over