Out of the office or out of touch? Workers share auto reply pet peeves

As workers head back to the office after a long weekend or extended holiday break, down come the out-of-office messages tacked up on the digital walls of their inboxes. While seemingly innocuous, some away messages are more cringe-worthy than others, according to a survey of Canadian employees by online language learning platform Preply.

The worst offense, according to 22% of the 1,000 people surveyed, was not giving clear information on the return date. That was followed by a slew of holiday-themed offenses, ranging from using a generic holiday greeting like “Season’s Greetings” (17%) or a holiday-themed sign-off like “Jingle all the way” (15%), to sharing information about holiday travel plans (15%) and attempting humor with holiday-related puns (15%), per the survey. 

I’m getting big Grinch (and go to bed before midnight on New Year’s Eve) vibes from these results, but as an exclamation point power user, I admittedly might not be the best judge of email etiquette. 

My out-of-office message over the holiday break this time was succinct, but I recall (over)sharing about hiking and vacation plans on previous occasions. And I have definitely shamelessly included photos of my adorable cats in away messages gone by. (I have zero regrets; you’re welcome for those pictures of my furry monsters.)

But, if you, unlike me, want to learn from your out-of-office message mistakes, Preply offers three tips.

1. Clearly and briefly share how long you will be gone and when the recipient can expect a response.
2. Maintain a friendly, professional tone, but shy away from being too casual.
3. Provide an alternative contact person or other resources during the absence.

Happy New Year, ya filthy animals!

Ginger