Despite being hit hardest by the pandemic, Gen Z are actually feeling more confident about their future career opportunities than other age groups.

Overall, 62% of UK workers are feeling confident about their job prospects as lockdown begins to loosen, but this figure rises to 74% among 16 to 24 year olds.

Gen Z’s optimism is especially impressive given that their career prospects took an immediate hit during the pandemic. Around 11% of this age group lost their jobs because of Covid-19, compared to just 4% of millennials.

The research by LinkedIn also found that 32% of workers have reassessed what they want from a job because of the pandemic, while 35% of job hunters are now looking to try something new.

Nearly half (48%) of workers said they are feeling ready to reprioritise their careers following an incredibly stressful period defined by lockdowns, working from home, redundancy and government furlough schemes. More than half (53%) of workers said they had put their career on the back burner because of the stress of the pandemic.

“As we edge closer to normality, it’s encouraging to see the UK workforce starting to feel more optimistic about career progression and job prospects,” said LinkedIn’s Brand Marketing Director, Darain Faraz. “We know that taking those first steps can seem daunting – whether you are looking for a new role or considering progression within your existing one – but taking small steps every day really can make all the difference at this time.”

According to LinkedIn, the most in-demand jobs on the platform in May were customer assistant, delivery driver, software engineer, project manager and business analyst.

Recent research has also found that Gen Z and millennials are actually the most financially savvy age groups in the UK. According to the study, 68% of Gen Z and 61% of millennials budget and save more responsibly than their older counterparts.

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