Reports and Webinars are limited to the Region terms of your Pro and Prime subscription, as shown in “Purchased Regions”.

  • To filter all content types to individual Region(s) you have purchased, apply your Region(s) under “Purchased Regions.”

Articles, Video Updates, and News across all Regions are open to all Pro and Prime subscribers.

  • To see this content for any Region, use the “Content Filter”.

Back to insights

Gen Z doesn’t want factory jobs—and it could derail Trump’s push for a manufacturing comeback.

Apr 22 2025

Gen Z doesn’t want factory jobs—and it could derail Trump’s push for a manufacturing comeback. The current administration’s idea to revive American manufacturing is rooted in idealizing a 1950s-style economy built on stable, “masculine” jobs. But today’s labor market, worker preferences, and technological advances don’t quite align—especially for young generations. Nearly 4M manufacturing jobs are opening as Boomers retire, yet Gen Z is largely uninterested: only 14% would consider factory work as a career, according to Soter Analytics. Part of the disconnect is that these jobs are no longer as stable, well-paying, or union-protected as they once were—plus, Gen Z is prioritizing modern work values like purpose, flexibility, and work-life balance that these jobs aren’t known for. (Business Insider, Fortune)

👀 Read more from YPulse: Are Gen Z Workers Really Slumped, Antisocial, Quick Quitters?

Enter your colleagues' emails (max 10) to invite them to sign up for a YPulse account. We'll send them a message and let them know you invited them.

plus-circle Created with Sketch Beta.

Are these emails correct? If so, click Submit Invitation(s)?