Gen Z Answers the Phone By Not Saying “Hello”?

Recruiters are talking, and Gen Z is… not. Literally.

A viral social media post from a recruiter has sparked a very modern etiquette debate: Why are so many Gen Z candidates answering phone interviews with total, unnerving silence?

The recruiter explains she does tons of scheduled phone interviews, and she’s noticed a specific trend among younger applicants.

She’ll call right on time… calls they scheduled, with her number… and they’ll answer… and just breathe. No “hello,” no “hi, this is Taylor,” not even a confused “…yeah?”

Just ambient breathing and maybe a faint TikTok video playing in the background.

To be clear, she’s not slamming them. She says it’s not a deal-breaker, just weird.

A Millennial hopped into the conversation to explain why this freaks people out: “Saying ‘hello’ isn’t just polite. It’s how you confirm you’re a human who picked up the phone, not a haunted voicemail system.” (Rough paraphrase, but you get it.)

There are a few theories about why Gen Z doesn’t say hello. For one, they probably never grew up with landlines, so nobody taught them the sacred ritual of answering with, “Hello, this is [your name].”

Also, they mainly text. Phone calls are already borderline terrifying for some Gen Z’ers. Combine that with a lifetime of spam calls and AI bots, and you get a generation that treats every ring like it might be a trap.

The post has stirred up reactions ranging from “who cares?” to “this is why we can’t have nice things.” Some people think it’s just a new normal, while others believe that if you’re interviewing for a job, you should probably start the call like you’re not being held hostage by an invisible demon.