Journal Press India®

International Journal of Management Issues and Research
Vol 13 , Issue 1 , January - June 2024 | Pages: 73-93 | Research Paper

A Study of Work Ethics across Generations in Hong Kong – from Baby Boomers to Generation Z

Author Details ( * ) denotes Corresponding author

1. * Terence Kwong, NA, NA, University of West London, London, London, United Kingdom (terencek44@gmail.com)

The phenomenon of quiet quitting, or “tang ping”, has been observed in organizations in many societies, commonly amongst younger employees, which poses questions to employee’s work ethic. A study of 301 employees in Hong Kong across Baby boomers, Generations X, Y and Z found no statistically significant differences in the overall MWEP score and the seven core dimensions between these generations. Correlation analysis revealed significant positive association of age with “Centrality of work” and “Wasted time” dimensions, and the p-values for “Centrality of Work” and “Leisure” dimensions in Kruskal-Wallis test were approaching significance. These suggested that while there might be more continuity than differences in work ethics across generations, HR practitioners should remain vigilant of any potential differences in the work mentalities of employees from different generations and adopt appropriate measures to promote engagement and performance of their multigenerational workforce.

Keywords

Work ethics; MWEP; Generation; Difference; Hong Kong; Quiet quitting

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