As technology advances and the world moves further into the digital age, a generational divide between the youngest and the oldest members of the workforce is becoming more and more pronounced. Despite younger workers feeling confident in their tech skills, traditional office equipment like printers, scanners and fax machines often leave them just as lost as their older colleagues. This has led to a trend known as “tech shaming” where younger workers feel embarrassed when struggling with office technology. '
Megan Whittaker, a 29-year-old social worker from Brooklyn, Jazmyn Castillo, a 24-year-old associate team leader in Garland, Texas, and Damien Andrews, a 22-year-old business analyst from Birmingham, Alabama all confessed to feeling lost when it comes to using traditional office equipment. In some cases, the next generation of office employees struggle with the most basic tasks, such as how to turn on a computer.
Fortunately, the situation is improving with younger IT workers on board. Randall Wade, a 26-year-old from Alabama, admitted to struggling with setting up more complicated equipment, but is able to help his colleagues with basic tasks like scanning to email or putting a piece of paper into the printer. Similarly, Erika Loc, a 22-year-old up-and-coming IT whiz, faced tech-shaming at her first cybersecurity internship when her boss assumed she knew how to use a printer.
Office managers like Kate Yeagle who have the responsibility of making work tech friendly for everyone, provide tips on how to minimize the tech divide. These tips include not wasting time insisting tech is easy, scheduling no-shame questions-and-answer sessions and providing written directions whenever possible. Additionally, workarounds for common tricky office tech include using a smartphone as a scanner, using DocuSign to sign documents digitally and using a separate Google Voice number for work calls.
The future of office equipment looks bright, with tech experts like Owen Kelly, a 33-year-old techie from Melbourne, Australia, believing that no one should be using a fax now two decades into the new millennium. With the right support and guidance, the next generation of office workers can be empowered to make printing work.