Australian Federal Police Commissioner Reece Kershaw has breathed new air into the generational divide debate, apparently accusing younger workers of needing more praise than their predecessors to get by.

Mr Kershaw made the comments during a Legal and Constitutional Affairs Committee meeting, stating Generation Z needs praise “three times a week” compared to “once a year” for his own generation and “happy face emojis” were offensive to young people.

Adolescent Psychologist Michael Carr-Gregg told Gary Adshead on 6PR Mornings comparisons between the generations weren’t really a productive metric for work situations.

“I think it’s a fairly useless form of categorisation, to be honest,” Doctor Car-Gregg said.

Press PLAY to hear more about the resurgent generational debate

Image: Getty/Mark Evans