MANAGING MULTI-GENERATIONS IN THE BARBADIAN WORKPLACE – The Silent Crisis & New Strategies of Human Relations Management For the first time since World War II, we are experiencing in the Western World the interesting phenomenon of having four generations in the workplace sitting and working side by side. In some cases, the baby boomers are working next to their children and grandchildren of generations X and Y. This phenomenon has attracted a lot of attention on the part of HR practitioners in the USA but little research has been done to date in the Caribbean. This paper will therefore seek to address a similar phenomenon taking place in the Caribbean through the writer's own experience while serving on the Management Team of a local statutory corporation. The findings, though preliminary, are oft times humorous but can serve as a linchpin to help us better understand the root cause of many of today's personnel issues within the workplace. The paper further suggests that identifying this phenomenon is a first step to creating solutions that cut across the needs of these four generations.

1. Managing Multigenerations in the Caribbean Workspace – A Barbados Case The Silent Crisis & New Strategies of Human Relations Management Ian W. Walcott

2. Abstract MANAGING MULTI-GENERATIONS IN THE BARBADIAN WORKPLACE – The Silent Crisis & New Strategies of Human Relations Management For the first time since World War II, we are experiencing in the Western World the interesting phenomenon of having four generations in the workplace sitting and working side by side. In some cases, the baby boomers are working next to their children and grandchildren of generations X and Y. This phenomenon has attracted a lot of attention on the part of HR practitioners in the USA but little research has been done to date in the Caribbean. This paper will therefore seek to address a similar phenomenon taking place in the Caribbean through the writer's own experience while serving on the Management Team of a local statutory corporation. The findings, though preliminary, are oft times humorous but can serve as a linchpin to help us better understand the root cause of many of today's personnel issues within the workplace. The paper further suggests that identifying this phenomenon is a first step to creating solutions that cut across the needs of these four generations.

4. The Standard Categories Based on US Data 1981 or later Generation Y 1965-1980 Generation X 1946-1964 Baby Boomers 1945 or earlier Matures BORN GENERATION

5. Adapting the Standard to Barbados 1983-2000 Generation of Privilege (Millennial Generation) 1970-1983 Post-Independence Generation 1958-1970 Generation of Independence 1937-1958 Generation of Struggle BORN GENERATION

44. Q & A