desk jockey

American  

noun

Informal.

1. an office worker who sits at a desk, often as contrasted with someone who does more important or active work.

   desk jockeys at the CIA.

---

Etymology

Origin of desk jockey

First recorded in 1950–55; modeled on disk jockey

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

desk jockey

He figured this would be his career path: a white-collar desk jockey trying to help companies squeeze profits from the system.

From Washington Post ● Apr. 10, 2023

Seth is a by-the-book desk jockey; Bud ignores the rules when they interfere with undead evisceration.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 11, 2022

It does not present Winner as a lefty firebrand or a noble whistle-blower but as a maddeningly squirmy, fed-up desk jockey.

From New York Times ● Oct. 11, 2021

In the first episode, the TVA paperwork clerk can be seen playing solitaire on his tiny orange-hued monitor, and you get the feeling he isn’t the only desk jockey running games on their work computer.

From The Verge ● Jul. 13, 2021

How’s a desk jockey supposed to choose between health care and international law?

From Salon ● Nov. 13, 2019