Are we in the minority now?

[EarthSight]

At first, people kept talking about the arts as a particular problematic industry when it came to having to go along with political group think, and with having to declare pronouns, but now it's everywhere. The charity sector, community work, healthcare, tech, construction, sustainability, government, local authorities, construction, and it goes on. I'd say the majority of professionals I see online on social networking channels have pronouns in their bio. I'd say 70%, possibly more in some industries.

It's mainly the associated implications that bother me, the feeling you have to watch your back, the sense of being policed and having to be very, very careful in the working environment (and outside of it actually). From listening to true believers of the gender faith, I think they would be quite glad if their workplace seemed an unwelcoming place to a gender critical prospective employee, even if that employee was very pleasant to be around and kept to themselves. The fact that you don't believe the same things they do, inside your own head, is enough of a workplace issue for them.

Is there a industry this that hasn't been been affected by all of this in a widespread way?

What is a drag queen brunch? Do you all dress up, or are there drag queen guests?

It's really not common in the law. I rarely see pronouns in email signatures. Everyone at my firm is very much reality based, we have lots of conversations about it.

My son's at Bristol University doing science. He's GC and says he's not encountered any blue haired nutcases as he calls them. Thankfully science based people seem pretty sensible and in touch with reality.

No we're not in the minority.

Fair enough, I'm a SAHM so not receiving loads of work emails- but in my opinion, whenever I subtly chat to other local mums, neighbours, friends, (mostly people 30+ in age) absolutely no one goes along with gender ideology. People are lovely and polite of course, but no one is a true believer.

If I knew loads of university students I expect I'd have a different outlook. I just really really hope young people today wake up and grow out of this nonsense.

I'm in Healthcare. Everyone I have spoken to about it is GC.

The organisation has pushed pronouns signatures on emails.

I know one person who has done it and she is very sweet, would be desperate to include and help patients and I can guarantee has not given it any further thought than that.

Come the revolution (Kemi suitably attired on a sturdy steed), people won't even remember they wore these preposterous badges.

Right now, those pushing for full scale invasion of Iraq in 2003 have selective amnesia, more and more Brexiters do, and it'll be the same with this lot.

It'll be like it never happened to them, and we'll be sitting around saying that it absolutely did.

They're conducted by drag queens! With performances etc.
I find it very unprofessional, overly sexualised representations of women don't belong in the workplace.

Shitshow, innit.

Come over to Lloyd's/ London Market insurance. It's like 'Life on Mars'. The downside is that it is like 'Life on Mars'.

I feel quite grateful to be out in the sticks in an old-fashioned NHS Trust because pronouns in emails are seen in a small minority of signatures only. The only person in my team who currently does it is from Australia via London.

The really daft thing is I'm not going to remember people's pronouns from their email signature because 99 times out of 100 they match what you'd expect from the gendered name. So if introduced to someone I'd use a pronoun based on their name plus presentation if the name is unfamiliar. If really unsure i guess I would use 'they'.

Futile waste of time.

Try being in higher ed!

The place I work has just appointed a highly paid but not very experienced EDI officer brimming with ideas that have the chief exec gushing. There are several issues around this new officer but I dare not comment as my workplace is a nest of utter vipers and I'm currently the only breadwinner. Sad thing is that once upon a time I would have been one of the most supportive allies they could have wished for. Not now. I'm wondering when the collective unwashed are going to recover their senses....

I work in the NHS and see pronouns in less than 10% of signatures.

There are two people (women) that I work with quite closely that have them. One is a very kind and inclusive person who I work well with and who probably hasn’t given the ramifications much thought. The other I would have described as awesome, but for the pronouns. I am fairly certain she’s a lesbian, which makes me want to ask her where her head is at, but I won’t. I like them both very much.

Within our small team, I am “out” as pro-JKR. No-one has tried to get me disciplined yet. Biggest boss is almost definitely GC, so I feel fairly safe.

Was just about to say this! Tons of pronouns in academia, mostly in women's signatures.

@StoatofDisarray - Try being in higher ed!

Well, quite. Uni of Edinburgh, Sussex... 😡

Ridiculous.

Some are innocently passionate and keen to stay up to date and haven't yet caught on that there's a lot they've missed. Quiet mentions of the Cass report and the various court cases and inquiries quite useful there. But also a lot of quiet, stifled, angry conversations in quiet corners.

There's a lot of fear. It's not the same as compliance and agreement. The muttering is getting louder, it's all steadily simmering upwards.

I'll also mention that the quiet and angry muttering is not coming from people who were just prejudiced, old fashioned types. It's coming from people who were tolerant and open minded and very willing to listen and try to understand, and who have seen for themselves this impacting on vulnerable people. That's what has made them angry. They don't give a damn who dresses how or identifies as what, they care passionately about equality of access and consideration, safe guarding and women and children's rights.

Yes, I have to say I think most people who put pronouns on their email signatures are just doing it because HR told them to and have given it no more thought than that. Like telling you what font and layout to use.

I’m in one of those industries (in Scotland) and I only see pronouns on a handful of signatures - the vast majority of us are too intelligent to be taken in by the BS.

Tbh I'm sure it is getting more common. Hilarious to deny the role of social contagion in influencing gender dysphoria when social contagion is explicitly the point of asking people to put their pronouns on their email.

But she/her pronouns don't indicate whether the person is actually male or female. Not anymore.

There was a display of artwork in Kew Gardens a couple of weeks ago, with short biographies of the artists. One obvious female (there was a small photo too) with a woman's name had felt the need to inform all passers by that her pronouns were she/her.
The pronouns were slightly larger font than the rest of the bio 🙄

I work in engineering and the only pronoun email signatures I have seen are from our American offices and even then it is sporadic. I feel confident enough to have discussions in the office about gender ideology without fear of repercussions. I guess my office is full of quite sporty types who are utterly fed up with the fact it was a battle to get sports governing bodies to recognise the absurdity of transwomen in women's sports. As others have pointed out already I lose a lot of respect for people who use pronouns in their professional correspondence.

I'm interested in this, because I'm relatively involved in various EDI-ish initiatives in my industry (very traditional, very white, very male, poor record for supporting disabilities, neurodivergence etc - most of the initiatives are around making the businesses in the industry less shitty towards anyone who doesn't meet their typical candidate profile, mentoring people who might not have mentors or connections, and working with colleges and schools to encourage kids to come into the industry despite its reputation). I'm not sure why that would be seen as a scam (or if indeed I'm missing something).

Because they're often box-ticking exercises. I say that as a woman in a similar industry who ticks every single diversity box.
Things that improve and equalise the working environment in general naturally makes a workforce more diverse. But this is harder to achieve, and takes a longer time than visible 'EDI' initiatives. So people don't want to do it.

The basics.... a focus on good line management, adequate staffing levels. Think about it logically. If people are constantly run off their feet who is going to have the time to provide 'extra support' for, say ND staff? The time to build an inclusive team instead of picking people that 'just fit'? If promotion processes are arcane, archaic and require loads of people to 'like you' instead of an objective performance review and a small amount of colleague feedback. How will those whose face doesn't fit get promoted? If a company makes the hiring process super hard and holds teams to tight budgets, workloads etc why would a LM be happy to have women going on maternity or disabled people who constantly take time off?

My best bosses were great LM'. They never did any official EDI things but they fought for their staff and as a consequence managed to keep them. I found that the 'EDI' obsessed bosses were only interested in their own career furthering political agendas and could not care less about their own people, or any actual change.

Agriculture is so far untouched by Genderwoo.
Three people, completely unprompted by me,brought up how bonkers the trans nonsense is in one day this week,whilst in conversation. Last week my mum was talking about not using shop's fitting rooms because of who might be lurking in there.
I think most people can see that the emperor has no clothes,but are wary about saying it unless they know they won't get censored for it.