Gen Zers are more disconnected and distrustful of coworkers than their older colleagues—and they’re so lonely they’re taking days off work

Gen Zers are craving social connection, but they’re not finding it with their office peers. Navigating work settings has been a tough ride for the post-pandemic professional cohort, who missed out on office kitchen banter while being onboarded over Zoom: Now, they’re taking time off of work to cope with their loneliness. Gen Z employees are the least connected among all generations in the workplace, according to a new report from Workday. And the isolation crisis is so bad that they’re 12 times more likely to feel completely disconnected from their colleagues compared to their Gen X coworkers. In fact, Gen Z professionals are 16 times more likely to say they don’t trust their coworkers, compared to Gen X employees, according to the Workday report. Even when they do talk with colleagues, the chit-chat is limited to to-do lists and deadlines. More than four in 10 Gen Z staffers rarely or never have conversations with coworkers about anything other than work-related topics. And it’s sowing distrust among the youngest working cohort. Gen Z aren’t talking to older colleagues, but it’s only further distancing them from their peers Over a third of the Gen Zers surveyed said they don’t have colleagues that they can trust enough to speak with about personal issues. However, it’s not for a lack of trying—the study suggests their workplace integration dilemma may be largely out of their control. Many digital natives started their careers during the pandemic, clocking in from the couch instead of learning the ropes in the office. Without that early practice, it’s more difficult to acclimate to a post-COVID work environment different from that of their parents’. “Without the in-office rituals older colleagues learned from (think: shadowing a manager, overhearing how a deal gets done, or casually chatting after a meeting), Gen Zers are still working through how to lean on their colleagues and build shared trust,” the Workday report says. Gen Z’s disconnect from the workplace is n