Women in 'men's' jobs

[WhiteVanWoman91]

Leading on from the thread about why trade/construction jobs aren't more widely considered outside of the working class, I feel the same way that they're never really something us females are ever told much about.

WC lads often do pretty shit at school, but then end up ok after finding a trade. Maybe not earning £100k bigshot money but £40k+. However, I feel wc class women often end up in shit retail jobs or serving coffee etc.

I'm a female trucker in the construction industry, getting all my qualifications for site management etc. Trying to decide whether I'd rather be in transport or site management. But right now I love my job and earn circa £40k in an environment I Iike. Hate offices tbh.

I think despite people saying that male dominated sectors are hostile to women, I reckon many wc women would feel less intimidated in the sort of environment I work in than in a corporate office. They'd be working with the kind of guys they're married to, grew up with, and less likely to feel looked down on - people tend to be pretty snobby in this country even if most people claim to value 'diversity'.

I feel like a lot of women moan about 'not enough women in xyz sector' but not many want to lead by example. Will post some pics of some of the women I find inspirational as they seem to be pretty much ignored despite all the talk of male dominated this and that.

Oh the point about farming is relevant, I met someone socially recently who introduced a "farmer's wife" - turned out when I spoke to her about which one was theirs, it's her farm! And her DH married into the family. And she's the one operating the machinery and feeds at 4am etc, while he does the taxes and business side (vat stuff and some other stuff I didn't quite understand). I'm sure that isn't typical but I did wonder if I should have said something to her about how she'd been described by the host, but figured it wouldn't change anything. That one was a few months ago now and I'm still pissed off for not questioning it at the time though. It feels like i should have.

Should we not be looking at why female dominated careers always pay less? Because we don’t value feminine characteristics as much.

I work in hgv transport. I’m sorry, I'm prepared to be flamed for this but I love the fact it’s male dominated. If there’s an issue, men deal with it and move on. The women I have employed have been a pain in the arse, moaning, bitching and drama.

@TractorAndHeadphones

Also OP can you post the links to their 'grams I'd like to follow it too

Following a lot more than I realised! Here are some....

www.instagram.com/p/CWOSazMIIs3/?utm_medium=copy_link

instagram.com/cocotruckergirl?utm_medium=copy_link

instagram.com/norwegiantruckergirl?utm_medium=copy_link

instagram.com/womenintrucks?utm_medium=copy_link

instagram.com/little.trucker.girl?utm_medium=copy_link

instagram.com/becky_giles16?utm_medium=copy_link

instagram.com/truckergirl95?utm_medium=copy_link

instagram.com/truckergirlsclubnorway?utm_medium=copy_link

instagram.com/worldwidetruckergirls?utm_medium=copy_link

instagram.com/trucker_girl_nessi?utm_medium=copy_link

instagram.com/trucker_jamaican_girl_angellie?utm_medium=copy_link

instagram.com/trucker_barbies?utm_medium=copy_link

instagram.com/girl.truckers?utm_medium=copy_link

instagram.com/mallu_trucker_girl?utm_medium=copy_link

instagram.com/truckergirl01sb?utm_medium=copy_link

@seemingseamstress that is something that boils my blood so hot!

I saw someone recently who I went to school with and the convo went like

Him "so where are you working now?"
"Oh I'm on farm full time now"
Him "oh wow you're a farmers wife?!"
"No actually I'm a farmer"
Him "but I guess you look after your kids to"

Well fucking yes I do but you wouldn't suggest a nurse was any less of a nurse because she looked after her kids. No I don't "work" the 60hr weeks my dh does but when I am working I work just as bloody hard.

Luckily these conversations are becoming fewer these days. My MIL is one of the hardest working women I know but gets so little credit compared to her husband (also farmers) I won't stand for it

@Thewomeninthemirror

I work in hgv transport. I’m sorry, I'm prepared to be flamed for this but I love the fact it’s male dominated. If there’s an issue, men deal with it and move on. The women I have employed have been a pain in the arse, moaning, bitching and drama.

Lol, I wasn't going to have...the balls....to say it but it's true! I can stand drama and find dealing with lad culture much less of a chore. At least you can take them down a peg or two with some banter if you're not a total snowflake (sorry hate that term but it was most suitable one).

With office drama/grudges it's so much harder because you say the wrong thing and it's hello HR dept.

@olivehater

Should we not be looking at why female dominated careers always pay less? Because we don’t value feminine characteristics as much.

It's been observed that when various types of jobs go from being predominantly male to predominantly female, their status and pay tends to fall.

I would say we're pretty WC, I work in admin, he works in the food industry. I prayed that my daughter would be academic rather than my son, if only one of them could be. It doesn't seem this is going to the case and I'm trying so hard to get her to catch up and set ambitious goals. None of my WC female school friends have jobs which could support themselves, myself included.
Me: low level admin
Friend 1: retail
Friend 2: cafe manager
Friend 3: dental nurse
Friend 4: bank clerk
If you're not academic and you're female then you're usually fucked. Any career progression you had ahead of you is usually taken off the table if you have a family, for example retail, if you become a store manager for Aldi or Lidl they expect you on call pretty much 24/7 and you couldn't do it if you had dependents.
Their husbands are typically earning double what they are (tradespeople, site managers, mechanics) it seems so unfair that men typically do alright with or without qualifications. Who decided that dental nursing was worth £9.50 an hour and bricklaying was worth £19. Both are skilled jobs which require certain attributes (big hands, small hands) and a certain amount of dexterity. I would say both are equal in terms of responsibility and liability.

I'm a female gas engineer. Training was so hard and left me quite depressed. All Men and a hugely sexist attitude from all of them. I had to work harder to get the same approval, and when I did get anything wrong it was put down to being a female. There were many other trainees far worse than me and when they got stuff wrong it was put down to being new. Once I got through the training and apprenticeship, I find that many many customers don't trust me- men question me and offer their armchair knowledge. I go to tool fairs and get offered higher rates as they presume I'm not trade. The rage I get from men drivers when I'm driving a van is shocking! Nothing like the "normal" rage I get driving in my car. I often am assumed a lesbian for some reason?

However on the plus side I love my job. I'll never not have work. I get paid very well, set my own hours and whilst sometimes men are awful- women LOVE having a female engineer. I could quite easily never have to encounter another man in work again. Older ladies, single mothers, just women generally always seem to take up my quotes. And become long term customers. And what's more, and true of a stereotype- they TALK. Do good work for 1 single mum and she will sing your praises and you'll get 5 referrals .

@olivehater

Should we not be looking at why female dominated careers always pay less? Because we don’t value feminine characteristics as much.

In reality tho that would probably just result in a lot of moaning and not much else. Paralysis through analysis as my boss loves to say.

If women want to do a job then they should do it. If they don't then it's a bit rich to complain there's not enough women doing it. If trucking was a 50/50 split it wouldn't be considered a man's job.

it's a really good point OP. It's a catch-22, what would probably encourage more women to go for those jobs were if other women (and all different types, like those you follow on insta) were doing them, but until more women do them those role models aren't out there...

I personally would feel much more comfortable with a female plumber/electrician at home if I was home alone, would feel less likely that I was being ripped off by a female mechanic, etc.

@kittenkipper

I'm a female gas engineer. Training was so hard and left me quite depressed. All Men and a hugely sexist attitude from all of them. I had to work harder to get the same approval, and when I did get anything wrong it was put down to being a female. There were many other trainees far worse than me and when they got stuff wrong it was put down to being new. Once I got through the training and apprenticeship, I find that many many customers don't trust me- men question me and offer their armchair knowledge. I go to tool fairs and get offered higher rates as they presume I'm not trade. The rage I get from men drivers when I'm driving a van is shocking! Nothing like the "normal" rage I get driving in my car. I often am assumed a lesbian for some reason?

However on the plus side I love my job. I'll never not have work. I get paid very well, set my own hours and whilst sometimes men are awful- women LOVE having a female engineer. I could quite easily never have to encounter another man in work again. Older ladies, single mothers, just women generally always seem to take up my quotes. And become long term customers. And what's more, and true of a stereotype- they TALK. Do good work for 1 single mum and she will sing your praises and you'll get 5 referrals .

I can imagine it must be pretty annoying dealing with patronising armchair experts. Luckily I don't get told how to drive by men as most can't drive a truck. They REALLY don't like being flashed when hogging the middle lane and seeing it's a girl driving. 🤣 Love using the airhorn when situation calls.

It's institutional and it will take time to break. But it is happening. I am 40 and was young and naive enough in my 20s to think women and men were equal. My DH has worked in the council for almost 20 years. When he started, male refuse collectors received a bonus. Because they were men. And God forbid they be paid the same as women on the same scale.

Now there are female drivers and refuse collectors. But I'd say that's only been in the last five years, after a female head of service came in. So it's changing. But change will take time.

I used to do a very “male” job. 20 years ago when I was doing it I think I was one of 3 women in the country doing it. It paid fairly well and I was earning over 30k, nearly 40k a year. I had my Streetworks licence and can certainly operate diggers, whackers, do tarmacking, etc.

Then I had Dd and the job was a nightmare. They changed the system so previously if you were still on a job at 5pm you handed it over to the on call crew. But then they said you had to finish the job, even if it took 2 hours and claim overtime. So they could ring you at4.55pm with a new job which could take hours to complete. I had no guarantee I could get to the childminders to pick Dd up so had to leave.

Hours aren't particularly parent friendly. I average about 10 but have to accept that getting stuck on mway due to crash can turn it into 12. But in bad weather I often get several days off on full pay and on winter do a lot of half days (again on full pay).

One benefit is that it's a job you could easily bounce back into after mat leave. You'd be back on the road in days if you wanted quite literally.

Woman working in technology here! It’s wasn’t easy!! Only female in the class on my BTec that in its self was intimidating.
Constantly have to prove you deserve your role, not just hire for being female. Also there’s no flexibility, most of the consultants have a wife at home that does everything.

@kittenkipper Honestly, I wish I knew a woman gas engineer near me. In more than 20 years of owning my own place, I've met ONE gas engineer who didn't give me the runaround because I was a single woman.

I have a friend who is a female engineer who hates the fact that people hold her up as an example of diversity and feminism and is disproportionately in photoshoots for the company

I’m really saddened to read this. Girls and women need strong role models, it helps massively to attract and retain them in sectors/roles that struggle with gender diversity. It’s been shown to be important for people to see others similar to them in the organisations they work for.

Worked as an Independent Financial Adviser for 30+ years. For most of which I would be the only woman in meetings of100-200.

The initial problem for women was that many companies would require attendance at residential courses as part of the initial training. Also the perception that it required a high level of mathematical knowledge. ( It doesn't.)

A pity as the actual job I ended up doing ( self employed) would suit women - flexible hours for client meetings, importance of relationship building etc. Many women clients preferring to have a woman adviser too as they wouldn't feel patronised or embarrassed at asking questions.

I remember going to a training session run by the Financial Services Authority, I believe, which recommended awful sexist practices eg 'women/wives in jointly run family companies should not be paid above the level at which you had to pay National Insurance'. When I objected to this there was an awful long silence. Followed by the speaker, taken off guard, embarrassedly claiming he hadn't written the script just read it out.

After the session several men came up to me and said I was right to object but the spineless f...ers didn't have the balls to speak up to support me in the meeting, of course. And this is the problem - that many/most(?) men will not publicly support women's rights in a meeting full of men (for some unfathomable reason- losing face?)

This is really interesting. In my local area I can think of 3 vans I see regularly: female painter and decorator; female plasterer and XX and Daughter removals.
I believe all 3 are very much in demand, especially trades that work in people's homes as many women would prefer a strange woman working in their home to a strange man.
We also have a post woman and one female refuse collector and my mum once had a female gas fitter from British Gas. I hope this is a sign of things changing.

It’s about time that people woke up.

Workers are selling to the employers THE most valuable commodity.

And that is Time.

And every single one of us is guilty of not valuing the time that we are prepared to give.

Do any job you want. Nothing is stopping you. Nothing.

And if traditionally male trades pay more, then infiltrate those “male” trades.

If you want to.

It’s all bollocks really. It’s self fullfilling prophecies. If workers actually valued their worth - as a collective - well what do you think will happen?

Oooooooh it's a bit weird this thread has popped up just now.

I'm in hospitality and absolutely love my job. But lately I've been seriously considering a career change as I want to drive an HGV.

I've just turned 38. Don't know if I've left it too late? Anyway, thanks for the thread. I'll go back and read it properly.

I noticed that when DD was looking for an apprenticeship after GCSEs. Lots of nursery nurses and dental nurses, beauty, and admin jobs you suspected were mainly making tea, things you'd probably never make much money from, versus trades where you could. The opportunities most attractive to girls were not great - that may be why more girls stay on to A levels because of paucity of other options.

I sometimes wish I'd gone into a trade, my DF could construct anything but he didn't teach me much. On the other hand my hips and back were completely knackered by pregnancy so I would have struggled to do manual stuff after that.

I'm a construction project manager with 20 years of being a site structural engineer behind me. I have been very fucking lucky to have had part time working / flexible working available to me - but part of why is that my husband has always done half of everything. Drop offs, pick ups, sick days. I don't think I could have done it otherwise. But my boss now knows that if I phone and say I'm at home because a child is sick, I WILL be I work the next day because DH will be at home.

After a few times with baby no 1 when we had the little hissy fights at 3am vomit clean up as to whose meetings were more important, we went strict 50:50 and if it was your day to be at home, tough. Meetings had to come second.

I work in a male-dominated sector and love my job. I was approached and asked if I'd be happy to be included in some photos at my desk but declined, pointing out that I was one of approx 5 women in the entire building and it wouldn't reflect the truth.