New Study: Gen Z Workers Are Productive, Underpaid, and Emotionally Checked Out — All at Once

A major new survey of American workers aged 18 to 28 has found that Gen Z has developed a distinctly transactional relationship with employment — one defined by consistent performance, minimal emotional investment, and a permanent readiness to leave. Researchers are calling it the job situationship, and the data suggests it has become the default posture of an entire generation in the workplace.

The survey, conducted by PapersOwl — a well-established academic support platform whose workplace studies have been cited by Forbes, Fortune, and the New York Post — polled 3,000 Americans aged 18 to 28 on their attitudes toward work, their employers, and the future of their careers. The results challenge the assumption that Gen Z workers are either disengaged or fully invested. The reality, the data shows, is more complicated than either.

The Relationship Status Nobody Wanted

When asked to describe their relationship with their current job using the language of personal relationships, only 45% of respondents said it was a strong match and that they were committed to staying. 32% chose “it’s complicated.” 21% called it a situationship — convenient for now, with no long-term strings attached. And 2% said they were already ready to walk away, waiting only for the right moment.

The concept of a “job hugger” — an employee who genuinely loves their work and has no intention of leaving — has become almost obsolete among this cohort. In its place is something more guarded: workers who show up, deliver results, and quietly keep their options open.

This pattern did not emerge in isolation. PapersOwl’s previous research captured the early signals: widespread workplace rule-bending among Gen Z employees, from unauthorized AI use to quiet vacationing, pointed toward a generation running parallel systems alongside the official ones. The situationship is the emotional expression of the same underlying logic.

The Numbers Behind the Disconnect

The survey data is precise about what is driving the dynamic and what would change it. On retention: 67% of Gen Z workers say only a major pay raise would make them commit to their current employer for three or more years. Purpose initiatives, culture programs, and non-financial perks had minimal impact on that figure.

On office attendance: 39% cited making friends as a reason for going in, and 11% said they were hoping to meet a romantic partner at work. Productivity and career visibility were present in the data but were not the dominant motivators. 65% believe remote workers are overlooked for promotions — and many continue to work remotely anyway, accepting the trade-off.

On AI: 59% of respondents said they had used AI tools at work without telling their employer. Harry Southworth, Head of AI Research at EduBrain, sees the pattern clearly. “Young workers aren’t hiding AI use because they think it’s wrong,” he said. “They’re hiding it because they’ve learned that employers tend to react to new tools with restriction rather than adaptation. It’s the same instinct behind coffee badging or quiet vacationing — work around the rule, get the outcome, avoid the conversation.”

On instability: 37% said they would begin a quiet job search the moment layoff rumors started at their company, with no conversation, no warning, and no signal to their employer.

What Comes Next

The report does not frame the situationship as an irreversible condition. It identifies clearly what Gen Z workers want from employers: pay that reflects economic reality, genuine flexibility, real pathways for advancement, and honest communication during periods of uncertainty. None of these are new demands. What is new is the clarity with which this generation has decided that it will no longer extend loyalty before those conditions are met.

For employers, the implication is straightforward: the tools that built retention in previous generations — culture programs, branded perks, values statements — are not moving the needle with this cohort. The situationship employee will perform reliably right up until the moment a better offer arrives or uncertainty creeps in. Managing that reality requires a different approach.