Work expectations and potential employability of millennials and post-millennials on the Czech labor market

Research background: A common problem of employing the Czech unemployed (especially young people) is that their professional and personal qualities often do not meet the requirements of employers. Despite the increasing level of education, the unemployment of young generation of millennials has been worsening. It seems that they often lack relevant professional skills and social habits, and usually have unreal expectations about their initial job opportunities. We want to explore this problem in more detail. Purpose of the article: The purpose of the article is to present work expectations of today's Czech millennials and post-millennials and discuss their potential employability on the Czech labor market. Methods: The paper is based on the analysis of available scientific literature and the results of the authors' questionnaire survey focused on students of three selected Czech universities and their motivation to study at university and their expectations about the future career. The survey was conducted in spring and autumn 2016. The respondents were full-time and combined bachelor's and master's students of the College of Regional Development in Prague, the Masaryk Institute of Advanced Studies of the Czech Technical University in Prague and the Education Management Centre of the Faculty of Education of the Charles University in Prague. The relevant data were obtained from 484 students. Findings & Value added: The results support the research assumption that young generation of Czech millennials show relatively high expectations related to work and career, which would limit their employability. Many employers are afraid of employing young people, but from the perspective of potential shortage of qualified and motivated people on the Czech labor market they should learn to create appropriate and attractive employment opportunities for young people to ensure effective development of their potential. The article presents common work expectations of today's Czech millennials and provides employers with some advice to manage them.