I'm a Civil Engineer and have worked both out on construction sites and in design offices. I have encountered sexism working on sites but noted the following:
1) The guys under 40 were fine with working with me as they'd grown up with women as equals.
2) Men over 55 had a tendency to act in an avuncular manner, which was fine as I was learning my trade at the time and needed the extra help.
3) The only other woman on site was very defensive of her position and unhelpful to the point of being obstructive.
4) I had to raise several sexism complaints: 1 engineer who refused to speak to me because I was female (and he was a tit), 1 engineer who bullied me constantly because he was from Iran and thought women should be chained to the kitchen sink and didn't like them in the workplace and 1 guy with no engineering qualifications who fixated on me as I spoke to him as a person, so that meant I was after his body.
This site was 10 years ago and the sites I've worked on more recently have all been fine with no instances of sexism directed at me. That said, it could be because I have bright green hair which makes people stop thinking in their normal way and makes them treat me as a person instead of a gender, whcih makes a lot of difference. Although the more recent sites, I've had a lot more knowledge, so am often the one making the decisions, so it's wise for the guys not to piss me off. It still happens though, but only one day in 2 years, so there are improvements.
In the design office, I'm a specialist in my field of Highway Design and have no problems with sexism. That could be because I have been been working remotely for the last 4.5 years with only 1 colleague (also female and good at her job) and the office I share with other people is filled with people approaching retirement.
So, I think sexism is a lot less than it was. There are still hotbeds of it and certain companies are rife with it. In a reasonable or good economic climate, I'd advise people encountering sexism from either side to leave and find another job, but that's pretty difficult at the moment. Oh yes, and no one has ever said to me that I was moody because of the time of the month. One site guy said it behind my back once but I was going through a very horrible divorce at the time and was only barely holding on to being able to do my job by the skin of my teeth anyway.
I'm not married (done that, got divorced), I don't have kids and don't plan to have any. I'm in my mid 30s so am approaching the point where, with luck, people stop asking if I'll have kids and start commiserating with me about not having them. I don't fit into the typical female role in so many ways.
Anyway, there is one good thing about working in a male dominated profession. There's never a queue for the Ladies loo.
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Date: 2011-01-05 09:47 am (UTC)I'm a Civil Engineer and have worked both out on construction sites and in design offices. I have encountered sexism working on sites but noted the following:
1) The guys under 40 were fine with working with me as they'd grown up with women as equals.
2) Men over 55 had a tendency to act in an avuncular manner, which was fine as I was learning my trade at the time and needed the extra help.
3) The only other woman on site was very defensive of her position and unhelpful to the point of being obstructive.
4) I had to raise several sexism complaints: 1 engineer who refused to speak to me because I was female (and he was a tit), 1 engineer who bullied me constantly because he was from Iran and thought women should be chained to the kitchen sink and didn't like them in the workplace and 1 guy with no engineering qualifications who fixated on me as I spoke to him as a person, so that meant I was after his body.
This site was 10 years ago and the sites I've worked on more recently have all been fine with no instances of sexism directed at me. That said, it could be because I have bright green hair which makes people stop thinking in their normal way and makes them treat me as a person instead of a gender, whcih makes a lot of difference. Although the more recent sites, I've had a lot more knowledge, so am often the one making the decisions, so it's wise for the guys not to piss me off. It still happens though, but only one day in 2 years, so there are improvements.
In the design office, I'm a specialist in my field of Highway Design and have no problems with sexism. That could be because I have been been working remotely for the last 4.5 years with only 1 colleague (also female and good at her job) and the office I share with other people is filled with people approaching retirement.
So, I think sexism is a lot less than it was. There are still hotbeds of it and certain companies are rife with it. In a reasonable or good economic climate, I'd advise people encountering sexism from either side to leave and find another job, but that's pretty difficult at the moment. Oh yes, and no one has ever said to me that I was moody because of the time of the month. One site guy said it behind my back once but I was going through a very horrible divorce at the time and was only barely holding on to being able to do my job by the skin of my teeth anyway.
I'm not married (done that, got divorced), I don't have kids and don't plan to have any. I'm in my mid 30s so am approaching the point where, with luck, people stop asking if I'll have kids and start commiserating with me about not having them. I don't fit into the typical female role in so many ways.
Anyway, there is one good thing about working in a male dominated profession. There's never a queue for the Ladies loo.
Dommy_nick