Zoomers have Telephobia?

The headmaster of one of the most famous boarding schools in England, called Rugby, has said that there is something seriously wrong with what are known as Generation Zoomers (also known as Gen Z). They were born between the years 1996 and 2000. He says they are so mollycoddled by their parents that the resulting individuals cannot cope with everyday life without having a meltdown. There seems to be a depression and anxiety epidemic among them, even at the slightest setback. But the Rugby Headmaster isn’t the only one who thinks this is the case. Many employers find zoomers unemployable because, at the drop of a hat, at the most miniscule of negative events, such as a boss telling them they did something wrong, they call in sick or seek professional help because they claim they are unable to cope with the stress.

I’ve said this too and in England I believe it started a little before these zoomers were born. I believe that they let these kids off the hook when they eliminated O’ levels and replaced them with the absurd GSCEs. O’ levels were a real tester of how much someone could manage when it came to studying hard, memorising hard and regurgitating, in one afternoon, the information they’d absorbed in the previous year. It tested a student’s mental capacity and his physical agility at being able to keep up with the class, being able to stay up to study and still go to school the next morning. Students like me had no qualms about going to work and meeting deadlines and tight schedules at work. Compared to the dreaded O’ levels, work was a breeze. But then the UK authorities decided to dispense with the O’ levels and replace it with GCSEs which had an exam but a lot of the marks for the final result came from course work that the pupil completed throughout the year. Shortly thereafter, the O level scores shot up. Who completed the coursework? Was it mum, dad, an older sibling or cousin? There’s no way to know. And the kid has an easy time getting easy A. Then this same kid ends up at work and subsequently has a meltdown because no one is doing his work for him. They’re also considered very fussy and demanding before they accept a position.

They will ask for things that no one usually asks for in terms of resting pods and health days, something that the older generation would think was totally out of order. To people of my generation, and I’m sure yours, the aim was to get your foot under the table and earn the trust of your employer before asking for anything. I once interviewed a young lad for an assistant’s position in Dubai. Shortly after the interview, I rang him to offer him the role. He accepted but I was flabbergasted at what he said next. He requested an advance on his salary and that was even before he’d even started. That was the audacity and entitlement he had. You can guess how that conversation went.

There’s a reason employers are disappointed in zoomers. I was shocked to learn that these kids have telephobia? Now that’s a brand new made up word but it means that these kids have a telephone phobia and are afraid to make simple phone calls. It’s not that they don’t know how to use a mobile phone. It’s just that, to them, the phone is simply for scrolling through their social media feeds and WhatsApp messaging. So, no talking, just scrolling and typing emojis. I was even more surprised that colleges are running programmes in which zoomers are being taught how to speak on the phone.

But I won’t put it all down to the GSCEs because this epidemic is somewhat global. Every young adult these days seems to be ‘off’. So much home-schooling and online learning is happening these days and whilst it may have its merits, there are serious drawbacks in that the child does need to be in a public environment to experience the ups and downs of life which are as prevalent in schools as they are in the workplace.