Even before Covid, all of the 10-15 new hires that hired in 2018 with me were very disappointed with the company. Zero job satisfaction. Not empowered. Garbage authoritarian culture. Lack of meaningful work experiences. Investment in Software, technology, and work flow improvements are 20 years behind. Etc etc. I know of 2 people that have hired in since 2018 (out of maybe 20-25 in my department) that genuinely enjoy the work (traditional chemical engineering roles). Most are actively applying to other industries and/or applying to business school. Covid has greatly accelerated an already inevitable outcome. These are people that probably would have stuck around a few years for the pension but are now trying to gtfo. Several have already left. Many more will follow. The company is facing a major talent crisis as it is axing experienced employees, halting recruiting, and seeing major attrition in the 2-5 year range. Also, everyone I know (including mid and late career) seems to think this is an icky industry. The cognitive dissonance is palpable. The older ones can’t leave but the younger ones will.
This is an excellent post by @kti+179shOAj, it deserved to be in a thread of its own.