A lot has been written over the last couple decades about dealing with a sense of entitlement that seems to be part of the DNA of today’s younger workers. From schools concerned about getting sued over grades, to retail managers dealing with salespeople and corporate leaders with a young bunch of professionals, plenty of folks are bemoaning the younger generation’s demands about how to be treated like conquering heroes before they have accomplished anything. This is not necessarily a GenY/Millennial thing; they are bearing the brunt of it now because they are the younger workers, but the same was said about GenX, and no doubt the World War II generation had some choice words about the Baby Boomer hippies coming to work for them. Each generation deals with this, but it probably gets more attention these days because social media has given people more opportunities to air their grievances.

Before getting into how to deal with this, it is important to note that, first, not every young person is going to be like this, and second, this sort of narcissism is not reserved for the young. Yes, it does seem like the newer generation of workers has been raised to believe they are all “Number 1” and everybody gets a medal. My experience, though, is not so much that they demand to be treated like they are in charge as soon as Day One on the job; instead, many just want to be given the chance to prove themselves, and they push back against the attempts to rein them in and make them conform to old ways of doing things. And while there are plenty of Millennials who act like they should get whatever they want without doing the work first, there are also lots of people from my generation, as well as the one ahead of me, who do the same thing. We do not say they have a sense of entitlement, though, we just say they’re an ass. Despite all the chest-thumping about this issue, it is really nothing new.

Having said that, it is still a problem for you, regardless of who is doing it. One thing worth keeping in mind, though, is that a demanding 22-year old in their first post-college job has the chance to grow into a better employee. The demanding 42-year old, unfortunately, is probably set and is far less likely to change. Think about that when you are deciding where to spend your effort and who is worth saving.

One way to head off problems is to be very clear about expectations. When I teach at a university, I am up front with my students in the first class about what my expectations are for the semester. I let them know what I think they are responsible for and explain what I see as my role in the course. Everyone knows the standards, and it is up to them whether they meet them or not. You should do the same with your new employees as they come into the company…ALL of them, not just the younger ones, or the ones you feel might be a problem (if you can already tell they might be a problem as soon as they walk in the door, then why did you hire them?).

When someone comes to you about a promotion or a raise, they need to be able to explain why they have earned it. Have they exceeded expectations? Have they demonstrated the ability to handle more responsibility? If you do not feel they’re ready for it, come up with a plan together for what they need to do to get it. This should build off of your earlier expectations for them rather than changing their job completely.

“If you don’t give me a raise, I’m quitting” is often the adult equivalent of “I’m going to hold my breath until you say yes!” The difference is, a little kid is ultimately going to start breathing again, but your employee’s threat to leave just might be carried out. My advice: let ’em go. If you have someone who is overly demanding, who is not prepared to work hard to get ahead, who wants rewards without earning them, well, that is just going to hurt your organization in the long run. If you give in to unreasonable demands, you send a message to other employees that they can also get whatever they want, and they are going to be resentful if you do not give in to them, too. Your little prince or princess may cause more damage than they are worth, and in fact, your hardworking and responsible employees will probably welcome their departure as much as you do.

One thing to avoid: the “back in my day…” stories. It suggests you are out of touch with them and do not really understand their perspective. The world has changed in the last 10 years, and while the basics (hard work, dedication, honesty, and so on) are as important as always, the ways of doing business have changed. Your employees are less inclined to listen to you if you seem like you are stuck in the past.

If you have problems with “entitled” younger employees, it might be because they are Millennials and their upbringing encouraged it, or it might simply be that they are jerks and would be the same in any era. Either way, if you are careful in your hiring and are up front at the beginning about expectations, you can avoid a lot of issues. If problems do come up, stay strong and do not give in to unreasonable demands, while at the same time making sure you do not ignore reasonable requests.

It might seem like you have to be a parent, but at least the pay is better here.