Office Worker Wonders If It’s Okay To Mention Coworker’s Constant Burping Habit Or Endure It Out Of Politeness
One awkward habit turned into a daily workplace dilemma.
Most workplaces have their little quirks. Someone always talks too loudly on the phone. Someone else microwaves food that fills the entire office with a mysterious smell.
But sometimes a small habit can become hard to ignore, especially when the office is quiet.
One 24-year-old woman says she recently started working with a new coworker who quickly became a favorite around the office. The coworker, who is 28, has a bubbly personality and gets along easily with everyone. She’s friendly, upbeat, and generally keeps the mood positive during the workday.
For the most part, working with her has been great.
But over time, the woman began noticing something that caught her off guard.
Her coworker burps. A lot.
She says it happens roughly every 10 to 15 minutes throughout the day. The office itself is usually very quiet unless someone is actively helping a customer, which means even small noises tend to stand out.
The coworker also tends to snack frequently at her desk, which doesn’t bother her at all. The issue is that the burping is often loud enough to be heard clearly across the room.
To be fair, the coworker does say “excuse me” every time.
Still, the constant noise has started to become distracting. The woman says she’s unsure whether the coworker realizes how noticeable it is, especially in such a quiet workspace.
She’s also unsure whether bringing it up would come across as rude or overly critical.
Now she’s wondering if it would be better to say something politely or simply ignore the habit and move on.
Here are the screenshots so you can read the full situation.
Let’s dig into the details
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We gathered some interesting comments from the Reddit community
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“A burp is involuntary so it's not as if she does it on purpose.”
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“It sucks having to listen to other people's annoying and/or gross noises.”
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“YTA….rule of thumb: if they can't fix it in 5 minutes, don't bring it up.”
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“For me it was her random loud chirps in the quiet office that were startling for me - oh well.”
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“It’s generally not a good idea to bring up potential medical issues that your coworkers may be dealing with.”
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“Pick which battles you think are worth it. This would not be the one I would pick personally myself.”
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“When you ask management don’t blame her specifically, just say you would focus better with music or white noise.”
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Workplaces often bring together people with different habits, personalities, and levels of awareness about how their actions affect others.
What feels normal or harmless to one person can sometimes stand out more than expected in a quiet shared environment.
In this situation, the coworker seems friendly and polite, even saying “excuse me” each time, but the repeated interruptions have started to bother the person sitting nearby.
The challenge now is deciding whether addressing it would help or simply create unnecessary tension.
What do you think? Would it be reasonable to mention it politely, or is it better to let something like this go? Share your thoughts in the comments.
