‘Can you tell me your appraisal rate?’ New employee’s question to senior sparks workplace debate

A new employee’s questions during his first meeting with colleagues have sparked a debate about workplace etiquette. The interaction was shared on X user Ojas Sharma, who appeared surprised how directly the newcomer questioned a senior employee about an appraisal rate and project budget.New employee’s direct question sparks debate over office etiquette. (Representative Image)Sharing the incident, Sharma wrote, “Bro. So, new guys joined my company and they spent the whole day trying to figure out who their managers were. One guy got to know his teammates and started talking about the tech stack and all. Even I was standing there, lening and introduced myself.”He then described how the new employee asked a senior colleague he had met only a few minutes earlier, “Is our project budget good enough for an outing?”The newcomer then asked, “What is your appraisal rate?”(Also Read: Zomato AI suggest Mexican wraps when asked to recommend Kolkata delicacies)According to Sharma, the senior said his appraisal was in double digits. The new employee then asked, “Can you tell me?”The senior, who appeared frustrated the question, responded, “Should I show you my paycheck now?”“I was standing there in absolute shock,” Sharma wrote. “Like, how do you ask these questions in your FIRST meeting with someone? Some questions are simply not meant to be asked, my guy.”Take a look:Internet divided over workplace etiquetteThe post drew mixed reactions, with some users finding the new employee’s questions amusing while others argued that there was nothing inherently wrong with asking about salaries or appraisals.“He will eventually learn,” one person commented.Another simply wrote, “Confidence level.”“Confidence is scared of bro,” a third user joked.However, some defended the newcomer and said employees should be allowed to ask questions without being mocked.“I don’t see a problem in asking questions. Nahi batana hai toh mat batao, but no need to be rude to them,” one user wrote.Another commenter suggested that the incident could be linked to the employee being inexperienced. “Perhaps your company is hiring seventeen-year-olds. This critique against the younger folks is simply unheard of, for the most part,” they wrote.Some users pointed to the importance of workplace training. “That’s why HR training is necessary. There are some questions and things that shouldn’t be discussed among colleagues,” one comment read.Others shared similar experiences from their first jobs. “Our fresher group were literally discussing each other’s salary and I was not comfortable sharing at first, but they all shared, so I also shared. I thought we weren’t supposed to discuss salaries,” one user said.(Also Read: