Value context and insight. lkm@koreatimes.co.kr
Gen Z bank employees leave lucrative stint due to rigid corporate culture
gettyimagesbank
By Lee Kyung-min
An increasing number of bank employees aged 30 and younger, mostly Gen Z, are leaving, despite the high salaries and job security, market watchers said Tuesday.
Advancing the collective move is a top-down corporate culture of obedience with little room for creativity or flexibility. Also coming into greater focus is emphasis on work-life balance, as guaranteed by overall expanded welfare packages and discretion in workweek scheduling.
“Financial services entities including banks are defined almost exclusively by the top-down chain of command,” said an official with 15 years of experience at one of the five leading commercial lenders.
“It is no different than the culture in the military. If an order is given, you have to follow without asking questions.”
Failure to comply will result in delayed or outright denied promotions, a common and natural course of corporate personnel management accepted by many.
“Most do what they are asked without making a fuss," the official said. "Entry-level employees may find themselves in circumstances they do not particularly care for, leading to higher turnover rates.”
According to environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG) reports issued in the first week of July by the country’s top three financial groups — KB, Shinhan and Hana — the turnover rate among their employees aged 30 and younger averaged 4.77 percent. This was up eight-fold from 0.57 percent in 2020.
The figure for KB came to 5.7 percent in 2023, up from 5.5 percent in 2022. It was a further jump from 1.3 percent in 2020. The youngest age group’s figure far exceeded 2.2 percent in the 30-50 age group and 1.2 percent in the over-50 age group.
Shinhan had the already-high figure of 7.1 percent among the under-30 age group inch up further to 7.3 percent last year.
The overall turnover rate stood at 7.2 percent for last year, up 1.4 percentage points from the previous year's 5.8 percent.
Entry- and low-level employees collectively saw the figure climbing to 8.9 percent, compared to managerial figures (6.6 percent) and mid- to high-level employees (5.9 percent).
Hana’s rate stood at 1.31 percent last year, up 0.28 percentage points from 1.03 percent in 2020.
Many Gen Zers leave for fintech startups.
According to a survey of 209 Millennials born between 1980 and 1995 and Gen Z employees by Job Korea, a recruiting platform, nearly half, or 49.3 percent, said they were not satisfied with their job descriptions.
More than half said the feeling is great enough for them to seek a new job. Some 47.6 percent said they were not at the moment preparing to change jobs, but were willing to consider it upon encountering a good opportunity. Almost 80 percent said they were currently thinking about changing jobs.
Fintech startups including Naver, Kakao Pay and Viva Republica are among the most favored employers for Gen Z.
Kakao Pay, the payment and settlement subsidiary of IT titan Kakao Corp., has Millennials and Gen Z employees accounting for up to 90 percent of the total.
The age of Toss employees averages 32. The mobile app, operated by Viva Republica, is known for its flexible working environment supportive of collaborative work as well as generous vacation package.