Millennial Man Can't Cope With How Gen Z Answers the Phone: 'Can't Be Real'

Newsweek

5 days ago

Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources.
Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content.
There are many things that Gen Zers do that leave millennials perplexed, but their latest habit to leave internet users stunned is their phone etiquette.
Millennials (people born between 1981 and 1996) have a lot to say about their younger counterparts, from their fashion sense to their quirky behavior. We have had to accept many things about Generation Z (people born between 1997 and 2012) ultimately, but one millennial man can't hide his shock any longer, and he has taken to social media to share his thoughts.
Josh Levesque from Long Beach, California, shared a video on TikTok (@joshblevesque) to criticize Gen Z's questionable phone etiquette. He highlighted the idea that Gen Zers will supposedly answer the phone without uttering a word, just staying silent until the caller speaks to them.
The idea of not greeting someone when they call is "insane" behavior for Levesque to comprehend. He even wondered if it is a weird prank that Gen Z are playing because it seems too absurd to be true.
Josh Levesque talking about the Gen Z phone habit.
Josh Levesque talking about the Gen Z phone habit.
@joshblevesque / TikTok
After taking to TikTok to share his thoughts on Gen Z not saying hello when answering the phone, the video has gone viral with more than 917,800 views and over 55,700 likes at the time of writing.
Newsweek has contacted Levesque via Instagram for comment. We could not verify the details of the video.
During the clip, Levesque said: "I'm not asking you to fully initiate conversation with like a prepared monologue. I don't need you to recite a f****** poem; I need, 'Hello, this is Josh.' Just something. That's phones, that's how phones work."
Given how tech-savvy Gen Z are, you would think they'd understand simple phone etiquette—but apparently not.
Levesque even weighs up several of the Gen Z arguments for why they don't speak first during a call. This includes the idea of it being a potential scam call, or the idea that the caller has come into their space so it is on them to introduce themselves. Neither of these points seems sufficient for Levesque, who says, "This can't be real."
He adds in the video that he was introduced to this behavior by a recruiter who claims that Gen Zers often remain silent when answering his scheduled calls for a phone interview. While Levesque says that he doesn't have to call any young people so he hasn't experienced this himself, he saw a lot of commenters and social-media users unashamedly stating that this is something they do.
The TikTok caption alongside the video reads: "I refuse to believe this is a thing that is actually happening. Please tell me you at least say hello … like everyone who's ever answered a phone in the history of telecommunications."
Since the clip was shared online on July 12, it has certainly captured plenty of attention and generated discussion about this latest Gen Z habit. Many TikTok users have taken to the comments section to share their thoughts, leading to more than 8,300 comments on the viral video so far.
One comment reads: "So they basically just Gen Z Stare when they answer the phone?"
Another TikTok user wrote: "I call you and I don't hear confirmation that the call went through, I'm hanging up."
A third person replied: "Instantly, throwing away the application and not hiring that person."
But not everyone agrees, as one commenter added: "nah you called me. introduce yourself, explain yourself and maybe ill respond."
Do you have any viral videos or pictures that you want to share? We want to see the best ones! Send them in to [e-mail] and they could appear on our site.