‘An overworked employee… will only result in poor work and personal misery’: PR queen Roxy Jacenko’s competitor lashes her ‘offensive’ comments about ‘lazy and entitled’ Australian workers
- PR queen Roxy Jacenko criticised Australian workers for being ‘lazy and entitled’
- The business woman said too many people weren’t willing to start at the bottom
- Competitor Nicole Webb has fired back by saying Jacenko has it ‘plain wrong’
PR queen Roxy Jacenko has come under fire by a competitor for suggesting young Australian workers are lazy and entitled.
The millionaire PR guru made headlines last week when she claimed Australia has a cultural problem where workers preference a work-life balance over success.
Impact Agency chief executive and founder Nicole Webb has released a statement on her company website calling Jacenko ‘just plain wrong’.
‘A communications agency isn’t a sweatshop, Roxy. Invest in your people and take the time to create a supportive culture; productivity and great work will follow,’ the post read.
Competition is heating up in Sydney’s PR scene with Impact Agency chief executive and founder Nicole Webb (right) hitting back at Roxy Jacenko (left) after she said Australian workers were ‘lazy’
The businesswomen seem to have differing opinions on what makes a good leader, with Ms Webb pushing more for balance with her staff.
‘As a business owner, go right ahead and work long hours. Sit in bed at midnight and shoot-off emails. That’s your prerogative – you chose this life and hopefully the effort you put in pays off,’ her post read.
‘But, it’s unfair to expect employees to reciprocate this behaviour and nor should you want them to.
‘An overworked employee who sleeps too little, sits too much, stresses and struggles to find balance or create boundaries in their life will only result in poor work and personal misery. You can kiss goodbye to your clients too Roxy, that’s what happens when frazzled employees produce sub-standard work.’
Ms Webb, who has been at the helm of her agency for 20 years, said people will ‘go to the end of the earth’ if they have a great manager.
Jacenko, who founded her PR firm Sweaty Betty aged 24, is notorious for answering emails at all hours.
Jacenko (pictured in her glamorous office in Sydney’s Paddington) said Australia has a cultural problem of laziness
The 38-year-old told Daily Mail Australia work life balance was a wonderful idea but was not unrealistic.
‘I work seven days a week because I want to exceed expectations – good enough is not good enough for me,’ she said.
Jacenko, who appeared on the Celebrity Apprentice Australia in 2013 and now owns several PR businesses, said many young workers are ‘mollycoddled’ and expect too much when they enter the working world.
‘Every Australian business owner will tell you that we have a problem at the moment with young people refusing to work hard,’ Jacenko told Daily Mail Australia.
‘They work for you for six months then they’re off because they think the grass is greener.
‘They’re not willing to put in the hard work – you don’t see people staying in the same job for five years like you used to. I think it’s a big problem.’