Young people of earlier generations also switched jobs more often than older workers; hot economy makes it harder to keep top talent

Millennials are used to hearing disparaging comments about their generation. Understandably, they don't like it.

"It's often really frustrating to hear these generalizations about millennials wanting the corner office immediately, being addicted to technology, and unreliable and all of these," said Katy Devlin, 35. She is editor-in-chief of Glass Magazine at the National Glass Association. "My staff is completely millennial, and none of that squares with our experience."

Many criticisms of this generation are unfounded, according to both government numbers and social researchers. Moreover, some of the characteristics and expectations attributed to millennials—such as wanting the ability to work remotely—really span multiple generations.

Myth No. 1: Millennials are job-hoppers

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics' numbers on job tenure show millennials don't switch jobs any more frequently than earlier generations when they were the same age.

"You can't keep anyone at that age. The bigger driver (in job churn) is the hotness of the economy," said workplace culture consultant Jamie Notter.

Sarah Sladek, a consultant and CEO of XYZ University, said she does observe more frequent job changes by millennials. However, she said millennials are also joiners, who will be very loyal in the right circumstances.

Jean Boisson—with the perspective of being a talent acquisition specialist at the American Osteopathic Association and age 30—said millennials are often misunderstood and they do get annoyed, especially by the myth that they are always looking for the next shiny object.

However, "I don't think they're afraid to make that move if they're not finding their particular position fulfilling, versus an older generation that's looking for more stability," Boisson said.

Myth No. 2: Millennials are impatient and/or lazy

Notter said it's not correct to call millennials spoiled, but they did grow up with an elevated status compared with previous generations of children. They had more say over their schedules and more egalitarian interactions with adults.

"So now in the workplace they are expecting that same access and influence," Notter said. "If they had the opportunity to ask the CEO a question, why not?"

Nicole Harris, CEO of the National Glass Association, said if you're hiring low achievers, "that's a hiring problem," not a generational issue.

Myth No. 3: Millennials put a higher priority on work-life balance

Boomers and Gen X-ers are asking for more flexible schedules and for opportunities to work remotely, too. However, millennials grew up with technology allowing them to work anywhere at anytime, so they may be less patient with policies against teleworking, Notter said.

"That change was happening anyway," said Paul Bellantone, CEO of Promotional Products Association International. "I think the millennials carried the banner for a lot of things workers wanted for a long time."