Office Etiquette or Office Manners What is Office Etiquette or Office Manners? and why it it Important? When someone at work interrupts you while you're talking, shows up late for a meeting or swipes your lunch from the break-room fridge, you probably wonder how a person could be so rude. All these things are breaches of etiquette, an unofficial code of conduct that dictates how coworkers treat each other on the job. Etiquette's importance extends into all areas of your life, including the way you dress, eat and work with others.