Gen Z says sending “thumbs up” emojis to work colleagues should be banned altogether, as it creates a “bad office atmosphere”.
Last year, UK employees were surveyed about which emojis they found most offensive in work communications.
These included an eye rolling emoji, a person shrugging their shoulders and an upside down smiling emoji.
However, Gen Z, those born in the late 1990s and early 2000s, claim that the thumbs up emoji is the most passive-aggressive.
In a since-deleted Reddit post, one user wondered, “Am I not old enough to be comfortable with the thumbs up emoji?”
The anonymous person went on to explain that he had recently started his career using Microsoft Teams to stay in touch with colleagues.
“Currently, there are only a few emojis you can use to react to messages. Most people in the workplace always use the ‘thumbs up’ reaction.
“I don’t use it that often. I’ll add a heart to my responses or reply with something as short as ‘Awesome!’ or ‘Thank you.'”
After complaining that they thought they were using too many exclamation points in their messages, they turned to other Reddit users for advice.
“anyway, [they] “I think sending a ‘like’ message is normal, but I still find it a very unsettling response. Does anyone else feel the same way?”
A Reddit user explained why the thumbs up emoji is unsettling. (Getty Stock Image)
Interestingly, this supposed Gen Z employee has sparked debate on the website, with one user replying: “To younger people, the thumbs up emoji has a very passive-aggressive connotation.
“Just giving a thumbs up is very rude. It’s the same at my workplace so it’s been a weird time getting used to.”
A second person asked: “Why does this make you anxious? Honest question because I literally reply to 90% of messages like that. But I’m almost 40 so I wonder if it’s a generational thing. I’m more worried about the heart reaction.”
“I understand what you’re saying. In my previous workplace, we had a WhatsApp chat for team members to send each other information, but most of the [thumbs up emoji]” another user replied.
“I don’t know why, but it seemed a bit hostile to me. Like they approve but say ‘I don’t really care/are not interested’? I don’t know if you feel the same way, but I got used to it and now giving a thumbs up is a bad thing.”
One person claimed the emoji gave off “bad vibes.” (Tyra)
The conversation then spilled over to X (formerly Twitter), where one user commented, “The thumbs up emoji is too passive-aggressive. No one will tell you otherwise.”
“I don’t make the rules but the thumbs up emoji is passive aggressive. I don’t know why but it gives me bad vibes,” argued another.
So, when you’re talking to a Gen Z colleague, be aware that your casual thumbs up emoji may be offending them.
