5 Things Gen Y Can Do to Survive Recession, Layoffs

In some ways, Generation Y professionals may be better positioned than Baby Boomers and Generation X workers to survive a recession. For one, they don't have the same strong allegiances to their employers that their Boomer and Gen X counterparts have, which some experts say might make it easier for them to cope with being laid off. Nor do they have the same financial burdens as Baby Boomers and Gen Xers. So if Gen Y professionals do get laid off, they have fewer expenses to worry about. (For more reasons why Generation Y is well prepared to survive an economic downturn, see 5 Reasons Gen Y May Survive Recession, Layoffs Better than Gen X and Boomers.)

But in other ways, a recession could come as a complete shock to Generation Y. They've never before experienced an economic downturn as working adults, and the resulting budget and job cuts may come as a rude awakening for this entitled, coddled generation that expects special treatment from its employers. (For more reasons why the economic crisis could be a sobering experience for Generation Y professionals, see 5 Reasons Gen Y is Unprepared to Survive Recession, Layoffs.)

Whether they're poised to withstand the economic storm or whether they're going to get soaked by it, Generation Y workers will have to change their expectations of their employers and their behavior in the workplace -- if they want to hold onto their jobs, career experts say.

1. Gen Y workers must understand that they can't have it all during a recession.

Generation Y is notoriously demanding of employers. In a 2007 CareerBuilder survey, employers reported that millenials expect raises and promotions within a year of starting a new job, access to consumer technologies and lots of vacation time.

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