Most annoying office habits and coworkers

10 annoying office habits: Nail clipping, eavesdropping and food theft drive employees crazy

January 23, 2024 10:21 AM

As employees head back to the office, they're once again faced with the reality of working with some pretty weird coworkers.

Whether it's the office chatterbox who spends the day oversharing, or the food thief who snags others' leftovers from the fridge, employees share the frustrations that come with working with difficult team members. Many have expressed annoyance over people's inability to clean their dishes out of the communal sink, while a few had more unique challenges to contend with.

"One habit that particularly grinds my gears is when someone talks to their plants," one employee anonymously shared with EBN. "It's not just a talk — they host full-blown conversations. It's both amusing and slightly bizarre, especially when you overhear them discussing weekend plans with a fern."

Employees certainly aren't alone when it comes to their irritation with work: 90% of workers have a coworker that annoys them, and 57% have considered quitting or have left their jobs because of annoying teammates, according to a survey by Quality Logo Products.

What gets on your nerves at the office? Employee Benefit News asked employees to share their workplace faux pas. Make sure you're not guilty of these bad — and often disgusting — habits.

Not your mother's house

"Someone had made a pan of brownies and left it on the table to share with the staff. The young employee took her fork that she had just been eating her lunch with, and ate right out of the brownie pan with it. I was aghast! When I asked her what she was doing, she genuinely had no idea what I was upset about! She got offended, saying, 'That's how we do it at home!' You are not at home, you are at work and no one here wants to share in your saliva!"

Use your indoor voice

"I had a team member who was simply very loud. It wasn't even about what he was saying. Anything he said was said at least five times louder than it needed it to be. I couldn't stand it. After a few months I decided to have a talk with him about it. It was bothering other workers and affecting our productivity. It had to be done, but sadly, it didn't work. I guess some things can't change."

Fashion faux pas

"One of the worst office offending bits of behavior I've noticed was one of our engineers came into the office wearing a shirt that, at first glance, said Gatorade with the logo, but it actually said 'Get laid.; I had to pull him aside and tell him that was inappropriate. He inspired a formalized dress code in the office, otherwise it would get out of control before you know it."

Leave it for the doctor to decide

"This individual would subject his coworkers to graphic imagery of his medical issues — for example, by lifting up his shirt to display a mole on his back, or sending pictures of his kidney stones. His behavior grossed his coworkers out and made them feel deeply uncomfortable. While it is generally acceptable for coworkers to talk about health and support each other's struggles, I think we can all agree that showing graphic medical issues unprompted, without warning, and without consent, crosses many professional boundaries."

The office Debbie Downer

"A colleague was consistently pessimistic, which undermined team morale. We made several attempts to address the issue with open communication, but this was met with further pessimism. The individual was convinced they were being unfairly targeted. Eventually, it became essential to involve management and HR to reach a constructive resolution. The experience made it clear that a single individual can harm a positive workplace culture. In hindsight, we may not have onboarded the individual in the first place had we known they weren't a match for the office culture."

Unique office decor

"One memorable experience involved a colleague's penchant for leaving Post-it notes everywhere, but rarely for work-related purposes. Desk drawers, computer monitors and even coffee mugs were adorned with cryptic notes that seemed to form a modern art installation. It became a game of deciphering the messages and decoding the purpose behind each strategically placed Post-it. Eventually, we addressed it during a team-building exercise, turning the quirk into a shared inside joke that lightened the office atmosphere."

Secrets aren't safe

"I once worked with an eavesdropper a few years back. I've had a number of meetings where I caught this person eavesdropping and got reports that they would repeat what they heard to other people. This caused a lot of problems because people stopped trusting one another and they started avoiding the eavesdropper. This got to the point where people would only talk to them when they really needed to."

An overpowering smell

"'Anne' wore too many scents. They wafted in the air as she walked by, and her office was highly scented. Unfortunately it was not a pleasant aroma, but instead reminded us of a mix of our grandma's old perfumes, hairspray and cheap room sprays with names like 'Lilies of the Valley and 'Spice Market.'"