Some employees are struggling with the return to office. Now, the workplace etiquette industry is booming

Many companies had to manage employee discontent when calling them back to the office as risks from the Covid-19 pandemic eased. And now that they’re back, employers are having to address a new issue: some employees have forgotten how to behave in the office.

Many companies had to manage employee discontent when calling them back to the office as risks from the Covid-19 pandemic eased.

And now that they’re back, employers are having to address a new issue: some employees have forgotten how to behave in the office.

Demand for workplace etiquette training has surged over the past two years as companies grapple with the fact that some employees brought their at-home habits back to the office and others had little experience in a professional setting in the first place. More than 60 per cent of companies plan to implement etiquette courses for staff this year, according to a survey of more than 1,500 business leaders published in July by job seeker service company Resume Builder.

The growing workplace etiquette business is just the latest example of companies’ efforts to adjust to the hybrid work era — ensuring that they have productive teams while keeping workers happy.

Anne Chertoff, chief operating officer at New York-based etiquette consultancy Beaumont Etiquette, said the firm has experienced a 100 per cent increase in companies requesting trainings over the past two years, with demand coming from employers of all kinds.

Download the CTV News App for breaking news alerts and video on all the top stories

“It’s like people just got out of practice in some ways,” Chertoff said. “If you just got used to taking your lunch plate and putting it next to the sink, that’s what you’re still doing. So, you have to learn and remember that, no, you have to wash your dish because you’re not at home, you’re at the office.”