Gen Z women increasingly can’t find jobs — but it’s not because they are lazy, new research reveals

The ladies of Gen Z are making history — but for all the wrong reasons. 

Would-be career gals in their late teens and early 20s are out of work and in a rut, according to startling new data that deems Gen Z women as the new face of unemployment. 

But the disgraceful designation isn’t due to gender- and generation-wide laziness, according to the March findings. 

Instead, it’s an effect of Zoomer women’s poor grades, poor health and poor grip on the ever-changing advancements of artificial intelligence, per the Women in Work 2026 report from PwC, a leading professional services firm in the UK. 

“The female unemployment rate sharply increased from 3.5% in 2023 to 4.2% in 2024, spurred by rising unemployment among young women, which increased from 9.5% to 11.8%,” wrote the study authors, who classify jobless belles as NEETs — meaning “not in education, employment or training.” 

Researchers found that female Gen Zers between the ages of 16 and 24 — notably those who didn’t exactly graduate at the top of the class and who aren’t fit as a fiddle — are more likely to identify as NEETs, absent from the post-pandemic job market and unable to keep up with AI, which is reportedly taking over female-dominated posts in the workforce. 

“Young women that have both low educational attainment and health conditions will be four times as likely to be NEET compared to an average young woman (48.0% to 12.2%),” warns the analysis. “For young women … targeted AI skills development and vocational training is more likely to reduce NEET numbers.”

Lewis Maleh, CEO of global recruitment agency Bentley Lewis, also notes that compared to Gen Z men, women of the demographic are often afforded fewer workplace advantages. 

“When young men leave school without strong grades, there are well-established routes waiting, like construction, trades, logistics, which are all hiring right now and don’t require further education,” Maleh explained to Fortune. “Young women with the same low education go towards retail care, or hospitality.”

“These sectors have been shrinking and offer limited progression,” he said. “It’s not ‘What are young women lacking?’ It’s ‘Why haven’t we built them the same paths to employment?’”

For higher chances at high-rolling positions in STEM — science, technology, engineering and mathematics — Maleh encourages the girls to get familiar with the fast-paced world of robotics. 

“Learn to use AI tools properly,” he urged. “Practical AI fluency doesn’t require a degree, and employers are crying out for it.”

“If you can get an apprenticeship — those in digital, green energy, and health tech are seriously overlooked, particularly by young women — then great,” continued Maleh. “But failing that, don’t wait for the perfect opportunity to find you.”

“Build proof of what you can do, a portfolio, a side project, et cetera,” he advised. “The candidates we place at the highest levels aren’t always the ones with the best grades.

“They’re the most curious, adaptable and well-connected.”