Hello it’s me … When you answer the phone, do you say “hello”? That might sound like a crazy question … unless you’re under 28. It seems some Gen Zers expect the person calling to say hello first. This phenomenon went viral with a post on X where someone who works in recruiting wrote about her experience calling Gen Zers.
"I'm a recruiter so I do a TON of phone interviews and something I've noticed about Gen Z specifically is that a lot of them answer the phone and don’t say anything," writes lex. "Like, I can hear their breathing and the background noise, but they wait for you to say hello first."
Commenters explained why this is – and it kinda makes sense. First, it’s a defense against spam calls. Saying “hello” can trigger robocalls. It’s also to prevent scams. Some fear their voice saying “hello” could be recorded and used in voice-cloning scams.
Another reason some young people, who grew up without landlines, avoid saying "hello" is a generational difference in phone etiquette. Some of them believe that if you're the one calling, you should start the conversation.