While Gen Z usually gets the reputation of being the most financially strapped, it appears that their parents are also struggling. Despite working their way up the corporate ladder for the best part of three decades, new research says that Gen Xers are having to turn to second (and sometimes third) jobs to make ends meet.
That’s at least according to Deputy’s survey of more than 1,000 hourly workers across the United States.
A staggering 81% of Gen Xers, (or 43 to 59 year olds) say their current job doesn’t pay enough to make them feel financially secure, according Deputy's data as viewed by Fortune. That’s compared to 75% of Gen Zers, 73% of millennials and 71% of baby boomers.
“Many Gen X workers are facing intense financial pressure – from rising costs to juggling the responsibilities of caring for both children and aging relatives, all while managing the highest average debt of any generation in the U.S," Deputy’s CEO Silvija Martincevic wrote in a statement to Fortune.
That doesn’t mean that Gen Z is peachy keen. Fighting to keep up with a volatile economy while often subjected to paltry entry-level salaries and oversized student loans, the most junior employees in the workforce are still reeling.
A whopping 68% of Gen Zers report to Deputy that they’re stuck living paycheck to paycheck. That feeds their desire to clock in for money alone. While 50% of all respondents say the paycheck motivates them to go to work each day, that rises to 77% of Gen Zers.
Even so, it’s Gen Xers who are forced to tack on the most gigs to afford the economy. A third of the cohort holds two or more jobs, more than any other generation at 20% of Gen Zers, 24% of millennials, and 19% of boomers.
Gen X’s woes
Gen Xers have taken over the workforce, with many sitting atop the corporate ranks. Even so, their seniority isn’t always enough to bat away the financial blues. Likely those who are polywarking are in different straits than their more privileged counterparts in their generation. But it appears as if, across the board, Gen Xers are subject to an undue amount of pressure as they enter an especially expensive life stage.
The middle-child generation carries a fair bit of debt. At $33,859, Gen Xers have the highest median non-mortgage debt across the 100 largest cities, finds LendingTree. That’s double Gen Z’s median of $16,562.
Essentially, Gen Xers have lived longer and racked up more expenses than younger generations—at the same time, they’ve not lived quite long enough to be mortgage-free yet either
To top that off, Gen Xers are often left chipping in for other generations.
Many are helping out their Gen Z children stay afloat in a volatile economy, as 69% report to Bankrate that they have made a financial sacrifice to assist their adult kids. The generation, more than boomers, reports dipping into their emergency and retirement savings to do so.
At the same time, they are also shouldering the cost of taking care of their elderly parents, potentially covering a larger price tag as they stare down the barrel of the nation’s shortage of affordable care.
“To put it simply, many of these individuals are in an expensive phase of life,” Rod Griffin, senior director of consumer education and advocacy for Experian, wrote to Money. “They may have mortgages and car payments on top of the ongoing costs of raising a family. They may be shouldering education expenses for themselves and/or their children.”
That all might further fuel Gen Xers feelings of instability. A sizable 78% of Gen Xers reportedly worry about finances daily, which decreases to 74% of Gen Z, 75% millennials and only 66% boomers—per Deputy’s report.
This is not the first time Gen Xers have been clocked as the anxious generation. They were the least optimistic about their finances, according to New York Life’s Wealth Watch survey in 2022.
While at their peak earning potential, many found themselves crunched by factors like dual caregiving responsibilities, gray divorces, and rising healthcare costs, notes the report—leaving little left for Gen Xers to focus on themselves..
“For the generation of families and individuals stuck in the middle of caring for (and/or providing for) both younger and older relatives, the impact and potential damage to their own personal finances are magnified,” Bankrate senior economic analyst Mark Hamrick told Fortune.
