Can\u27t Get No Satisfaction: An examination of Generation Y work attitudes

There is growing interest in better understanding the connections between the work environment as perceived by employees and important organizational outcomes such as customer satisfaction and customer loyalty. While there are a number of notable conceptual frameworks which seek to elucidate the connections between employee attitudes and customer outcomes, there have only been limited efforts by academics to utilize these principles in a hospitality industry context. The purpose of this paper is to review the broad framework of organizational psychology and its relevance to the hospitality, and more specifically, to introduce the concept of employee engagement. Survey responses of 264 employees from five hotels in Brisbane, Australia are analyzed, revealing that Gen Y employees are less engaged and less satisfied than non-Gen Y employees. Implications for practice and future research are suggested