Gen Z Workplace Jargon Leaves Older Colleagues Confused, Study Finds

A study of 2,000 UK office workers by instantprint has highlighted a generational divide in workplace vocabulary, with 68 percent of employees frequently encountering phrases they do not understand. The research also found that 36 percent would feel embarrassed asking colleagues from a different generation to explain unfamiliar terms.

Craig Wassell, Marketing Manager at instantprint, noted that the confusion is not one-sided. "Younger workers are just as likely to be confused by traditional office speak as older colleagues are by newer phrases," Wassell stated. "It is less about one generation getting it wrong and more about recognising how quickly workplace language changes."

The survey identified several terms popular among younger generations that often leave older colleagues perplexed. These include:

• Coffee badging: Appearing at the office briefly to be seen and get coffee.
• Bare Minimum Monday: Completing only essential tasks on a Monday.
• Career cushioning: Secretly preparing for an alternative career path while still employed.
• Rage applying: Submitting numerous job applications out of frustration with a current role.
• Quiet vacationing: Taking time off without formally declaring it as a holiday.
• Task masking: Making less important tasks appear as significant work.
• Resenteeism: Remaining in an unsatisfying job while harboring resentment.
• Loud quitting: Openly expressing dissatisfaction and intent to leave a job.

When tested on these terms, 81 percent of Gen Z workers correctly understood "rage applying," while only 29 percent of Baby Boomers did. Similarly, "coffee badging" was understood by only 21 percent of Baby Boomers and 34 percent of Gen X.

Conversely, older generations are familiar with phrases that often leave Gen Z employees confused. For example, only 38 percent of Gen Z understood the idiom "boil the ocean," and 57 percent knew the meaning of "get your ducks in a row." Nearly a third of Gen Z workers (31 percent) could not identify "blue-sky thinking," and 28 percent were unfamiliar with "close of play."

Wassell emphasized the potential impact of this communication gap. "When people are pretending to understand what their colleagues mean, avoiding contributing to meetings or even misunderstanding instructions, jargon can quickly become a barrier to good communication," he explained.

The researchers advocate for clearer communication in the workplace. "Whether you are speaking to colleagues, customers or clients, the best message is one that people actually understand," Wassell added. "A little less jargon and a little more clarity can go a long way."