The new rules of workplace loyalty

"The response was overwhelming. I received more than 100 emails and DMs from readers eager to share how their experiences shaped their views on the death of loyalty. Many laid the blame on CEOs who chase quarterly profits at the expense of their employees' jobs. Others accused millennials and Gen Zers of being entitled and unwilling to do anything outside their job descriptions. The clear consensus, as I heard over and over again, was that the corporate workplace has now devolved into a Lord-of-the-Flies dystopia."

"Companies "try to give people the perception that they are a 'family' at work, but they'll gut you like a fish and toss you to the sea as soon as the metrics look bad," he wrote. "Employees aren't much better," he added, as they're "looking for the next rung in the ladder and will stab you in the back as they try to climb over your corpse.""

Corporate leaders are increasingly ending implicit employment deals based on loyalty, signaling a move away from long-term job commitments. Employees and observers perceive a decline in employer fidelity, blaming profit-focused management and criticizing younger workers for entitlement. Many workers report feeling betrayed when companies portray themselves as family but act opportunistically during downturns. Mutual breaches of the psychological contract foster reciprocity of withdrawal and mistrust. Evidence of this vicious cycle appears across industries, reshaping workplace norms and heightening job insecurity, internal competition, and skepticism about traditional career ladders.

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