Elevator Etiquette

[msulinski]

When I started working at my current job (a little over a year ago) i noticed a behavior around elevators I hadn't seen previously. Basically, all the men let the women on first, and then let them off the elevator first as well. Previously, my experience was that whoever was closest to the door got on or off first.

On the surface, this may seem like good etiquette, but there are some practical issues and odd behavior around this new-to-me approach. If there are men closest to the door, they will feign holding open the elevator door while they wait for all of the women to get in. The real problem comes when it is time to get off. All of the women are in the back of the elevator, and all if the guys are standing in the way, waiting for the women to squeeze by so that they can get off first. I get the feeling that the women are less than thrilled with this system, at least based on the eye rolls I witness on a regular basis.

What about everyone else? Is it closest first or some other method?

[snowdragon]

Closest First. This sounds creepy to me

[veronaz]

Closest first
Exceptions:  someone carrying a baby or large packages, elderly person, physically handicapped (wheelchair or crutches).

What annoys me is when able-bodied people just stand looking at each other instead of getting on/off the elevator.  I say keep it moving.

[msulinski]

Glad to see I'm not the only one who would rather see things move more efficiently instead of this system based on some misguided attempt at chivalry.

[snowdragon]

Closest first
Exceptions:  someone carrying a baby or large packages, elderly person, physically handicapped (wheelchair or crutches).

What annoys me is when able-bodied people just stand looking at each other instead of getting on/off the elevator.  I say keep it moving.

I would still get out first if I were closest, but keep an arm on the doors to make sure they had all of the time they needed to get out.

[MrTango]

Person closest to the door goes through first.  That's how I treat any automatic door.

Also, anyone getting on the elevator needs to wait until people who are getting off have done so and people who are getting off at a particular floor need to be quick about making their exit so as not to unnecessarily delay things.  That, in my mind, supersedes disabilities.  Someone with a disability ought to have the opportunity to be the first or last to get on (as they prefer), but they still need to wait until everyone getting off has done so.

If someone were "holding" the door open for me, I'd probably say something like "Just go ahead."  If they tried to insist, I'd say "You're in my way."

[WillyNilly]

I really really hate when men do this. First off it is annoying and impractical as you point out. But its also flat out dangerous and scarey when it carries over to apartment buildings and hotels. As a woman, if there is an unknown man at the elevator waiting and he has me get in first, that means he's also waiting to see what floor I push, and then if we are going to the same floor and he has me get off first, that puts him behind me and out of my sight line.

[AuntyEm]

I feel differently.  For me it is a small gesture of politeness in an increasingly coarsening world.  Just as I would signal for someone who is elderly, a mother with small children, someone with an injury to go first, I expect a well brought up man to let a woman go first if they both reach the door at the same time.  Anytime someone gestures for me to go first, man or woman,  I would automatically thank them.

If I was in a situation where I was concerned for my safety with someone on the elevator, I would not get on or if necessary, get off on the first "wrong" floor though I'm happy to say that in my many years of elevator usage, I've not had this happen.

[Piratelvr1121]

Glad to see I'm not the only one who would rather see things move more efficiently instead of this system based on some misguided attempt at chivalry.

I think this is really what it is, not necessarily creepy (though it could be) but a misguided and poorly thought out attempt at chivalry.

[Hmmmmm]

It sounds to me the problem is the women do not understand the logistics that makes this work. When they enter they should stand to the side but in front, leaving space in the center for the men to enter.

When the elevator opens and man blocking the exit should exit but stand to the side of the elevator holding it open as the remainder exit.

In my 25 years of work experience (many in 65 plus story buildings with nmultiple elevator banks) I've seldom seen this process hindering anyone.

[Goosey]

I didn't know there was a gender based arrangement for getting on and off elevators.

First come, first serve. You exit in the most fluid and expedient manner. It shouldn't matter what someone's gender is. I can understand the chivalric gesture, but it just seems awkward and totally unnecessary to me.

[Twirly]

Ugh this is my daily pet peeve at work and I'm so glad I'm not alone, it always makes me feel like such a Grinch for rolling my eyes at what I know is merely a respectful gesture.

But it's so inefficient and annoying and usually the guys are just in the way! I have no idea what floor other people are getting off, so it often ends in this awkward dance where I pause to let others off first when I'm at the back of the elevator but then the guys at the front are waiting for me to get off first so by the time I move they also move and we bump into each other unnecessarily.

I'm personally  never worried about the safety aspect of it because I have very little regard for that kind of thing but I've heard that argument from other female friends who also dislike this practice. We're all people, let's just get on and off the elevator in the easiest way possible, closest first.

I also hate when someone hold the door for you after they've gone through in such a way that they are essentially half in the doorway and I have to brush past them to get through…awkward every time.

[msulinski]

I also hate when someone hold the door for you after they've gone through in such a way that they are essentially half in the doorway and I have to brush past them to get through…awkward every time.

I hate this too. There is no need for someone to stick his arm in front of the door to hold it open. The "open" button does the job perfectly well, as do the sensors that keep the doors open when they detect movement. The practice of using an arm to block the doors is so unnecessary.

[Bexx27]

Huh, I've never heard of this. I wonder if I'm just unobservant or if I live in a particularly non-chivalrous area. It seems like common sense to me that the people closest to the door should exit first.

[RebeccainGA]

In my experience, in both Arkansas and Georgia (both US Southern states), this has always been the norm at work. If there are men at the front, they get off first, but if there are multiple men near the back, the one closest to the 'door open' button holds it and the women get off first. Women just 'know' that we move to one side or the other, near the front, and then fill towards the back from there. I've never had it not work that way, in the years I've been working.

In other places, it's first come, first served - and yes, it would be a bit creepy in hotels or apartments. But I've seen it consistently in offices in the US South, and it is nice, especially if your elevator is one with a very fast door cycle.