Gas prices, rent prices, car prices, mortgage rates, interest rates; the cost of everything is going up, but wages aren’t. In today’s economy, the younger generations, Gen Z/millennials, are getting hit the hardest as they try to grow up and figure life out under today’s ridiculous economic standards. It is feeling more and more impossible for these young generations to get ahead. Getting married, buying a house, starting a family, finally getting that dream car are all things that people in their 20’s would have already accomplished 40-ish years ago. Now? That all seems impossible.  

Today’s younger generations face a struggle that older generations arguably did not. Although it is easy for someone to say that they struggled too, it is not a fair comparison when you bring the current state of the economy into the equation, which one might say is going more and more downhill. “The economy is horrible in my opinion. It made my ability to save somewhat harder because of how expensive everything is versus how much I actually make every week. Whenever I have some money saved, I need it for something else; to pay taxes, bills, or help my parents out if they need it.” according to Patricia D., 22. How is anyone supposed to buy a house with today’s interest rates? Or buy anything for that matter? Patricia also stated, “If the housing market keeps going up while the wages in certain fields do not, I feel like it is not obtainable to buy a house, besides the drastic increase of interest rates.” 

The job market? That’s also in the toilet. It is becoming more and more normalized for companies to claim they are “urgently hiring, “but then never get back to you once you put in an application. The lack of communication from potential employers is causing a lot of discouragement from people looking for a job and forcing people to settle into positions they don’t want because it is all they can get. Patricia, who just recently graduated with a Bachelor’s Degree in Criminal Justice in December 2022, has been actively looking for a job and says, “Most places seem like they are hiring but they either never reach out for an interview or to even say they are not interested in moving forward. I feel like the job market is scarce due to lack of communication among jobs and the applicants…it feels like I am doing something wrong but don’t I know since no one is responding.”  

“I work two jobs and yes, I do spend money on things I enjoy time to time… Even though I don’t splurge on shopping it is still extremely difficult to save up money. I know I may be making more money than people that are in college, which speaking of, are going to be burnt out by the time they are ready for a real job. Most of the employees from our generation are going to be burnt out at a very young age.” Kasey H., 21, also believes the economic state is horrible for younger people trying to move forward in life. 

It is hard to imagine living an obtainable life without having more than one form of income and moving out on their own. That was obtainable 30 years ago, but feels impossible now. “I’ve been out of school and working full-time for 3 years now with only saving up about $20,000. I’ve done the math and to live on my own, I would run out of money within 6-8 months and that is with everything going perfect, no hiccups.” Casey works a full-time job with decent pay, making approximately $21 an hour, where she got those estimates from. Says Casey J., 24.  

Casey also agrees that today’s job market is in the garbage. She has a Bachelor’s Degree within her field of social work and has many years of experience predating her college degree. “It is extremely difficult finding a job. I have applied to over fifty places and have heard back from four. Every other time I get a message saying they went with a different candidate, yet the job will still be posted as available. Now, after hearing back, it’s the whole process of interviewing. It’s never just one interview, they need to do multiple, so it’s overwhelming.”  

Casey J. said it best, “I have no idea what the future will hold. Expenses come up at any moment and it is impossible to save. I will probably never be able to afford the life I want.” Three different people; three different points in life; three different educational backgrounds. There needs to be a change to support the newer generations and provide them with the same opportunities those before them had.