A Glossary of HR’s Newest Lingo – Social Media’s Top Trending HR Buzzwords

Posted by: Karen Booher on December 1st, 2024

Employees have been flocking to social media sites such as LinkedIn, TikTok, and X for quite some time now to share their personal stories and feelings about work, and to get others’ opinions. Out of this, many different HR-related buzzwords have been coined. Some are more commonly used, but others you may be hearing for the first time.

Thanks to content from a recent article by TechTarget, following is a current glossary of terms to add to your library of HR lingo.

Anti-Perks. These are benefits that employees don’t care about because they feel they could harm productivity or their well-being. Some examples of anti-perks are catered lunches, nap rooms, video games, unlimited vacation, pet-friendly offices, mandatory fun events, and alcohol. While some employees may enjoy these benefits, others say they want bigger benefits such as better pay, positive work culture, and respect. Whereas unlimited vacation may seem nice, some employees say that it gets companies off the hook from paying unused vacation time when an employee leaves.

Bare Minimum Mondays. A new viral trend suggests reducing Monday performance pressure to alleviate anxiety for the start of a new work week. Bare minimum Mondays encourage workers to do the least amount of work possible to start the week to help them feel less anxious over the weekend and less overwhelmed on Monday mornings and Sunday evenings.

Coffee Badging. This is a practice of showing up for a few hours at work and leaving right away. This approach is used by those who operate in flexible or hybrid models. The employee will enter the office to fulfill the requirement of remaining on the property for a certain amount of time – such as long enough to get a coffee – but leave promptly after.

Digital Nomad. With more remote work options, people are moving from place to place, living in a “nomadic” way. Digital nomads can work anywhere with internet availability, including libraries, hotels, temporary housing, cafes, coworking spaces, and RV’s.

Emotional Intelligence. This refers to how a person understands, perceives, uses, handles, and manages their emotions. Those with higher emotional intelligence recognize their emotions and use tactics to guide their behavior, such as taking time to slow down, performing self-care, and stepping away from the situation. The five components of emotional intelligence include self-regulation, self-awareness, social skills, empathy, and motivation. Employers often test emotional intelligence to ensure employees can handle stressful situations in leadership.

Emotional Paycheck. This is what goes on top of the traditional financial compensation. Employees are looking at how employers view their work-life balance by offering options such as hybrid work and flexible hours. This emotional compensation shows the company values employees for more than productivity and trusts employees to manage home responsibilities – such as caregiving – while still completing their work duties.

Employee Boreout. Boreout stems from a lack of purpose and engagement in one’s tasks. The employee repeatedly works on tasks they perceive as pointless and has trouble finding value in their work. Symptoms of boreout include heightened anxiety, sadness, depression, procrastination, and physical ailments such as headaches.

Employee Burnout. Burnout is a problem in the workplace caused by a mismatch between job resources and job demands. Symptoms of burnout include severe exhaustion, mental detachment, and a feeling of loss of control. Burnout can lead to more serious mental health issues such as anxiety and depression.

Employee Experience. This term refers to how employees feel about an organization and how they were treated throughout their employment. It covers all touchpoints including the hiring process, employment, and employment exit. It is different from employee engagement, which focuses solely on current employment.

Fractional Work. This is another term for part-time work where the fractional employee is an expert in their field. Fractional employees may resemble full-time employees but are paid less and require fewer hours weekly. Because they are not working full-time hours, they may provide guidance to several clients at a time. Their duties may be the same as a full-time senior employee. Due to the cost savings, businesses are choosing fractional leaders to manage budgets, oversee marketing teams, provide sales direction, and establish a creative direction without requiring a full-time senior employee.

Gaslighting. Merriam-Webster named this as the word of the year for 2022. It is a form of psychological manipulation to mislead someone and cause self-doubt. Typically, gaslighting happens over an extended period of time, and the victim questions their own thoughts, becomes confused, and loses confidence. Examples of gaslighting in the workplace include hearing persistent negative accounts of performance, hearing negative gossip, pointing to mistakes that are not true, being told something wasn’t said when it was, being criticized publicly but hearing praise in private, and questioning of perception of reality in the workplace.

Ghost Jobs. These are postings that companies have no intention of filling in the near future. These postings may stay online after someone has already been hired for the position, may be posted early for a position in the future, or the job may not exist at all. Companies may do this to gauge the talent pool and as a means to continuously look for talent.

Glass Cliff. This describes when women are promoted to leadership positions during difficult times, such as during a company crisis or recession. These settings can position women for failure and can be compared to standing on a cliff’s edge – they fail and fall off. The concept of a glass cliff expands on the notion of “glass ceiling”, which alludes to obstacles that women frequently encounter when trying to rise to leadership positions.

Great Betrayal. This refers to employees feeling that the loyalty and stability of the workplace are not always what they seem. As laid off employees started posting about their job loss on social media (such as after massive tech layoffs started in late 2022), others began questioning whether their employers were as supportive as they claim. Workers started choosing to freelance over full-time employment to have more control to enjoy freedom and flexibility.

Great Gloom. Now that the Great Recession is over, the Great Gloom has arrived. Employee engagement continues to decrease as more employees are unhappy. Part of the reason for this unhappiness is workers are struggling with remote options, return-to-office mandates, and record inflation.

Great People Shortage. Experts warn of the Great People Shortage and estimate that there may be a shortage of around 85 million people globally by 2030. When millions of people left their jobs during the Great Recession in 2021, the labor market shifted. Some industries saw more employees leave than others, such as food service, manufacturing, and health care. More employees want work-life balance, so remote or hybrid work is in higher demand. There are also skills gaps creating an issue in finding the right employees.

Great Regret (or Great Remorse). The sequel to the Great Resignation (listed next), the Great Regret has come to signify the 40% of workers who resigned from their jobs during the pandemic and now regret doing so, primarily because it was harder than they thought to find another job, or their new job didn’t live up to expectations.

Great Resignation. During the COVID-19 pandemic, millions of people began quitting their jobs, in what is now known as the Great Resignation. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 48 million people voluntarily left their jobs in 2021, and over 50 million in 2022. They were looking for better pay and benefits, more flexibility, and better work-life balance, to name a few primary reasons.

Great Return. This is a term used to describe the trend of employees returning to the office – either full-time or hybrid – after working remotely for months or years during the COVID-19 pandemic. The Great Return can also refer to the phenomenon of employees returning to their jobs after the Great Resignation when millions of workers left their jobs to pursue new careers.

Great Stay (or Big Stay). After the mass exodus of employees during the Great Resignation, more employees since 2023 have been sticking with their jobs, and thus the coining of the next phase of the employee landscape.

Hush Trips. Hush trips involve an employee working from a vacation destination and not revealing their location to their manager(s). They don’t feel it’s necessary to tell their employer and do this primarily to take advantage of leisure activities after work. Some concerns that employers have when employees take hush trips are 1) secrecy – if employees can’t be honest with employers they may have more issues, 2) security – employees may take company-issued computers out-of-town and use unsecured Wi-Fi networks, and 3) there may be tax implications for companies depending on the length of time the employee works in certain states or countries.

Hustle Culture. This refers to the mentality that employees must work more than normal hours to advance their careers. It is also called grind or burnout culture. Hustle culture encourages employees to work longer hours and get work done at a faster pace. Employees who buy into this culture tend to work during their time off. Quiet quitting (defined later) has been termed as rejecting hustle culture with a better work-life balance by setting boundaries with work.

Labor Hoarding. This describes when companies keep employees during tough economic times instead of laying them off because they feel it will save money in the long run. Layoffs may subside some costs in the immediate future, but when the economy recovers, companies spend large amounts of money on recruiting, rehiring, and training staff. Labor hoarding allows companies to avoid these additional costs.

Lazy Girl Job. This phrase describes flexible, well-paying jobs that allow for free time. The phrase went viral on social media (#lazygirljob) starting in May 2023 as workers bragged about having time to unwind at work without sacrificing productivity. This phrase is part of the rebellion against hustle culture.

Loud Quitting. With loud quitting, employees aren’t afraid to show their unhappiness at work and are directly acting out by taking actions that can harm the organization. Some actions include bad-mouthing superiors, completing tasks incorrectly, and leaving online negative comments about the company on sites such as Glassdoor and LinkedIn.

Monk Mode. When someone is in monk mode, they shut out all outside distractions and give their whole attention to a single job. This way of working is modeled after the austere lifestyle of monks. It is a useful strategy for preventing burnout from handling too many tasks and projects simultaneously.

Office Peacocking. Another way companies are trying to entice employees back into the office is by creating a swankier office. This is called office peacocking. Companies are trying to make the workplace more inviting by creating spaces with comfort in mind that resemble a home-like environment. Instead of traditional cubicles, these offices resemble living rooms or lounge spaces with comfort items such as sofas, video monitors, modern décor and, of course, free coffee and food.

Perk-cession. When companies scale back on some of their fun benefits or perks, it is known as perk-cession. Companies offered these benefits when competing for talent, but with financial cutbacks, they may not be hiring or feel scaling back on perks could save money. Benefits typically cut back during a perk-cession include free food, commuter benefits, fertility assistance, fitness classes, pet insurance, barista-brewed coffee, and free laundry and dry cleaning.

Productivity Theater. This is a way for an employee to seem more productive by hacking digital communications, such as Slack or Teams. The employee wants to seem more available and busier than they are. They may appear to be working overtime or longer hours than in actuality. Productivity theater isn’t just for remote workers. In-office employees may also engage in this. Examples of Productivity theater can include responding to an email or instant message quickly, keeping a laptop screen active when not working, scheduling an email to be sent later, attending unnecessary meetings, and completing extra research to stay busy.

Proximity Bias. This term describes the tendency of leadership to favor employees working in the office. Managers with proximity bias view remote workers as less committed and productive than those in the office. Examples of proximity bias include excluding remote employees from important meetings or events, offering more interesting projects to in-office employees, evaluating the work of in-office employees higher than that of remote employees, and giving in-office employees more promotions or career advancement opportunities.

Quick Quitting. Also known as job hopping, U.S. workers are getting more comfortable leaving their jobs after working there for less than a year. From the employee’s perspective, gone is the general rule that you need to stay somewhere for at least one year before moving on. Employees no longer feel obligated to stick it out somewhere if they are unhappy.

Quiet Ambition. This describes a person who doesn’t work strictly for moving up in a company or improving the bottom line, but instead working toward achieving personal dreams and fulfillment. They look for a career to fit around their life versus shuffling their personal life around their job.

Quiet Cutting. This is a passive move by employers to reassign employees to new roles in the organization. However, these new roles are typically less prestigious, pay less, and are more demanding. This is a tactic to push employees to quit, so employers don’t need to pay severance. Employees are told their current job is being cut and they need to move into the new role as part of an organizational restructuring.

Quiet Firing. Instead of directly firing a person, quiet firing refers to treating an employee so poorly or disengaging them to the point where they quit on their own. A manager may quiet fire an employee by giving them the worst tasks, criticizing small mistakes, or excluding them from meetings or social outings. Quiet firing is a method of getting rid of an employee that a manager may not care for without the possibility for lawsuits, as firing requires documentation leading to the termination. If an employee quits on their own, the manager would not have to fill out this documentation.

Quiet Hiring. This term describes businesses adding new skills and filling gaps without adding new full-time employees. Employers may give current employees new roles or hire short-term help, such as contractors or freelancers. There can be mixed reactions to this type of hiring – some people embrace having expanded roles and learning more, while others feel they are being spread too thin with more responsibilities for the same pay.

Quiet Management. This takes the term “quiet” over to the manager’s side as it addresses employee-employer trust issues associated with remote work. Quiet management refers to a more hands-off management style, allowing employees to complete work with fewer distractions and less micromanagement, giving employees a sense of empowerment.

Quiet Quitting. This refers to doing the bare minimum to get the job done in order to establish work-life balance and maintain a clear separation of work and personal lives. Employees are still doing what is required of them but nothing more. Basically, they will only do what they are paid to do.

Quiet Thriving. An alternative to the above term of quiet quitting, with quiet thriving, people make changes to their workday to shift their mentality to feel more engaged. Instead of focusing on negative aspects of their jobs, people turn to the positive and make notes of what they enjoy. Ways to quiet thrive include making friends with co-workers, joining a committee or group to feel connected, crafting the job with management to do more likable tasks, and creating an accomplishment list and keep adding to it.

Quiet Vacationing. This is a trend where employees work from different locations without informing their employers. They still engage in work-related activities to appear present but work remotely from vacation destinations. They take these hush trips to avoid using PTO or vacation days. Some employees even schedule work emails to be sent during work hours and use “mouse jigglers” to appear active.

Quittok (a type of Loud Quitting). A new TikTok trend follows people on camera quitting their jobs. These videos posted with the hashtag #quittok have become quite popular, but also leave a digital footprint and can be found on the internet for years to come, which may affect an individual’s future employment prospects.

Rage-Applying. This is when a person applies to several jobs when fed up with their current role. This term from TikTok was coined when a user posted a video saying she applied to 15 jobs because she was unhappy with her role, getting her a significant raise at a new company.

Resenteeism. Combining the words absenteeism and resentment, Resenteeism describes workers who are not content with their jobs but are trapped for reasons such as financial obligations or lack of other employment options. They are psychologically absent and resentful of their current role. Some individuals may even express their dissatisfaction to management and other employees, creating a toxic work environment for those around them.

Sick Guilt. This is when an employee feels obligated to go to work even when they are sick. They do this to prove how sick they are to their manager. The employee may even feel remorse when they are sick because they can’t perform their best or come to work. Sick guilt is tied to a toxic work environment because employees feel their managers don’t trust them.

Side Gig (or Side Hustle). This is a job a person works in addition to their primary job to provide supplemental income. Sometimes referred to as Moonlighting, a side gig can be full-time, part-time, or freelance work. Side gigs grew in popularity when the cost of living increased and wages did not keep up with rising inflation. With the rise of work flexibility, some people can complete these side jobs from home. Examples of side gigs include accounting, delivery or Uber/Lyft driving, fitness coach, freelance writing, graphic design, photography, selling clothes/crafts, tutoring, video blogger, web developer.

Skills Gap. This is the difference between the skills employers want in a candidate and the experience the candidate has. Work is constantly changing due to emerging technologies, such as AI and automation, which can change the skills that employers need. To manage this skills gap, employers are reskilling and training existing employees, shifting workers to new roles, hiring freelancers or contractors, hiring talent, and acquiring other firms.

Social Loafing. This is a psychological term that describes how people exert less effort when working in a group setting versus working alone. Reasons for social loafing include lack of motivation, no individual recognition, and lack of accountability. To prevent social loafing, divide tasks out and give individual assignments for accountability and set expectations. Avoid making groups too large where employees have a hard time dividing out tasks and be sure to recognize the team for their efforts.

Soft Skills. These are interpersonal skills to help people work with others. Whereas technical (or hard skills) can be taught and are easier to learn, soft skills are typically the reasons employers promote or keep employees. Examples of soft skills include problem-solving, attitude, flexibility, motivation, communication, time management, teamwork, and leadership.

Talent Debt. This describes a group of disengaged employees that are unproductive and expensive to retain. During the Great Recession, workers left positions for new jobs, and companies held onto workers to help cover the loss of talent. While employers fought to retain workers, some were disengaged, unenthusiastic, and underperforming.

Tech Shame. This refers to feeling judged for having technical issues at work. It is more common with younger employees than older ones because stereotypically – whether it holds true or not – younger employees are more technically savvy than their older co-workers. Tech shame can keep employees from engaging in meetings or speaking up when there is a problem.

Threat Rigidity. This is the tendency of businesses to respond to problems by stifling innovation and concentrating on what has worked in the past. The drawback of threat rigidity is that it ignores any changes in the business environment, which can limit a company’s growth and innovation. The term has been used lately as CEOs implement strict return-to-office requirements that seem out of touch with their workforce and their needs.

Toxic Workplace. Toxic workplace environments harbor negative behaviors, such as manipulation, belittling, yelling, and discrimination. This culture can lead to low productivity, conflict, lack of trust, and high stress levels. Employees may feel anxious, depressed, or defensive. Employees may also find it difficult to speak up because of fears of punishment, rejection, or humiliation. Some potential signs of a toxic workplace include – no room for mistakes, office gossip, excessive stress, role confusion, lack of trust, unhealthy work boundaries, high employee turnover rates, lack of career support, and low morale and negativity.

Unretirement. During the Great Resignation, many older workers decided to retire early. Now, these workers are choosing to return to the workforce and “unretire”. Reasons for unretirement include the costs of inflation, finding a new sense of purpose, and numerous employment choices.

Well-Being Washing. This refers to the practice where companies prioritize projecting an image of being focused on employee well-being for external public relations benefits, while internally neglecting their staff. The outer appearance often contrasts with the reality of the workplace environment where toxic practices persist, and well-being resources are limited.

Workfluencer. Workfluencers share work content on social media platforms such as TikTok and LinkedIn. With more people working remotely, employees don’t feel they have the normal “water cooler” opportunities to discuss work with other coworkers, so they are turning to social media to talk about frustrations, advice, and day-to-day work lives. Some topics are controversial such as pay transparency, and some posts are behind the scenes to give career advice to followers based on how they handled a work issue such as getting a raise or dealing with difficult coworkers. Some workfluencers are turning these videos (hashtag #CareerTok) into a side hustle to earn extra income.

---

Source:

TechTarget, “59 trending HR buzzwords” by Amanda Hetler, Senior Editor, July 2, 2024