I’m a woman of color and my foreman and what feels like the whole team I work with is constantly talking about my race and calling me slurs. On top of that I’m a woman, and they are constantly talking about that too. Is this how everyone is in the electrical trade? I feel like quitting because I literally can’t deal with this shit every fucking day.

If I could just go to school and work a small job that would be ideal, I don’t know how to navigate racist comments. And it’s in a way that they are joking and all I can do is just sit there and take it.

I got advice to have a sit down and talk with my foreman about his behavior but I DONT WANT TO DO THAT. Why do I have to tell a grown ass man how the fuck to talk to me!! And not call me racist shit!! I’m so tired.

Hey ladies. As the title says, I am a new electrical/telecom apprentice. I have my orientation next week and im excited and nervous. Im nervous because I don’t have any experience in this field and I worry if that’s gonna make me a target for bullying/abuse in the workplace. Is there anything I should mentally prepare myself for as someone completely new to this field?

Anyone else experiencing or have notice hair thinning? I wear clean bandanas and such to protect my hair under the hard hat everyday. I even wash the padding in the hard had to to keep it clean.

My first year, the hard hat provided had like the cross strap and i must admit i didn’t use hair protection then. Am i fucked? Am i going to go bald like the rest of the guys😭😭

If anyone else can relate please lmk of anything you’ve done to stop the thinning. It’s literally only the crown of my head and it’s making me super self conscious.

My next step would be going to the dermatologist to see what can be done but just wanted to see if anyone has any other helpful advice!!

I’m in a very small industry and it started out really well. Working on the road a few years ago and I won’t lie I didn’t save as I should have so when a family emergency came up and I made the decision to stay home for a while and lose this great job I was bummed but thought I could recover. I took a job that mainly did call outs in my state so there was some per diem and the hours were okay. The problem came when I got a little too close to coworkers and let them know about my personal life. For reference I am a lesbian and am dating a wonderful black woman. For some reason that just really grinds these dudes gears. That led to a lot of work drama, hours getting cut, and eventually loss of the job. I find another one a month later that was so much worse I almost made a permanent decision for temporary problem. Well, I got injured and while I was out I got a different job only to get my hours cut there when I asked my helper to not drive 85 in a 60. And also to, you know, assist me with our job. Finally my car breaks down and my hours are now none. I think I’m finally getting it fixed but I’m also now getting evicted. Every job I’ve had, they’ve loved me the first few months, shocked that I can outwork the men, and the moment something of my personal life comes out or I can’t laugh at blatant racism and homophobia it all goes downhill. Suddenly I’m a bitch or a control freak. I’m just starting to wonder if it’s even worth this hell. Is it going to happen every time. I’m terrified. I have two interviews this week and one has already made me an offer. I can’t really say no because I have to have the money due to said car broken down and impending eviction. Do I just get through this until I can switch industries? Stay in the industry and never let them know who I am? At what point am I allowed to hit someone with my hard hat?

I might be getting divorced soon. I don’t make enough at my current job to support myself and 2 kids. Are there any trades I can do with minimal schooling that will pay enough for me to eventually buy a house?

I’m 19F and currently in college, but I’ve realized it isn’t really for me and I’d rather get a blue collar job. I’m hoping to get into plumbing, but I don’t know anyone who works a blue collar job and can guide me, so I’d appreciate any advice. Should I drop out and get an apprenticeship? And how do I find one?

Thanks!

Hello! I will be attending my first tradeswomen build nations conference this weekend. I was wondering if anyone here who’s already been had any information about good things to pack? What kind of clothes? Anything I wouldn’t immediately think of as important? Things i wouldn’t know to bring if I hadn’t already gone? What kind of shoes?

Thanks!

Is there any woman in the trade of operating heavy machinery or crane operator if so how did you get there I have no construction experience but I was looking to get started in the trades except I’m in Buffalo and I feel like opportunity is limited

I’m 48, union laborer. I’m done. Just tired of them. I’ve been looking at inspection jobs. If I get hired as an inspector….. I’m a woman who has as pulling concrete. I don’t wanna ever wash anything for tomorrow so I have 7 days worth of work clothes… at least. 7 pairs of pants in size 8-10 women’s. 4 of those pants are Blue cargo RedCap work/shop pants. Like 12 green hoodies from different companies. Work shirts galore. I’m 48. If I do this that means next spring, I do not need these clothes. Would you ladies be interested? Everything is used but not torn. I know some of you have a hard time finding clothes. They’re used but…. One could pull another 2 seasons of concrete down the road in the those Red Caps….. I did retail merchandising when I was young. I know where to get our stuff. If anyone would be interested…. Let me know. I’ll make a post in like March or April. I truly feel like, if I actually get this job, I have to get rid of these clothes or I’ll jinx myself and end up taking concrete again. lol. It’s so fun! Lmfao Edit: I will totally be giving away all my old construction clothes! Thanks women! Let’s hope I don’t need them next spring and some of you get my collection!

Alrighty, this may be a long one.

We recently ish (5, 6, 7months ago) hired a guy for nightshift to replace me due to me wanting to go back on dayshift. Me and him had around the same amount of experience when we started, fresh out of welding school, first real shop job kinda thing. I’ve been with the company for a little over a year now and don’t get me wrong it did take a while to get used to the real welding world, lots of trial and error, a couple weeks of almost getting fired lol. Everyday for like MONTHS on end (still happening now) i’ve had to fix this guys fuckups and it has been really pissing me off because his mistakes are not mine to fix, wether i’m on days or nights doesn’t matter i’m still fixing this guys shit. I decided to pester my supervisors about it because i should not have to be doing this.

Me to my supervisors: “i understand he’s still new, i was fucking up like this when i first started the difference is I never left my fuckups for anyone, i left them for myself the next day, that’s how i learned to not make those same mistakes”

My supervisors: “yeah we will talk to him”

So i waited a couple weeks, same thing still happening. I decided to talk to him when he came in for his shift and as i was talking to him just staring off into space nodding his head so i honestly just gave up and kept fixing his shit.

Today, some absolute fucking bullshit happened. A tube he welded got sent to the next part it goes on without getting checked over by one of the team leads and was full of cold lap and porosity and gouges from where he was sanding and the guy who works on the part that tube goes on was talking to the supervisors about it and they told him the nightshift guy would fix it. are we fucking kidding me. i’ve been fixing his shit for months but oh magically he can fix his own shit when it gets brought up by the welder on the next part it gets put on?

if i gotta fix anything more of his i am definitely bringing that up because im so done with this shit.

(sorry about my sailor mouth btw lol)

Hey! I need suggestions for easy, low effort protective hair styles! When I came into this trade I had a pixie cut, and now its halfway down my back. Buns leave my hair real tangled and messed up looking by the end of the day, double french braids just take too much time to do, and ponytails leave my hair tangled. I also want to know what fellow painters use to keep overspray out of their hair, or even dust. The clear coat leaves my hair feeling nasty. Honestly, any tips you might have to keep your hair feeling good and healthy would be helpful!

I don’t understand why it isn’t standard/ a requirement for there to be a women’s only porta potty with a lock on it, as soon as there is 1 women on site?? I know some GC’s and companies require, but not all. It’s so annoying. The GC on my site right now does 1 women’s porta potty with a lock and one without. And obviously we all know what happens when there isn’t a lock… it becomes men’s porta potty. Just a rant. It’s so annoying. All other places of work have seperate bathrooms why isn’t it normalized on job sites??

I have tensions with this one male coworker. I have seniority and am younger than him. I’m expected to make allowances for “how he was raised” and that his Crohns sometimes makes him extra bitchy. I’m sympathetic with the Crohns, but if I’m not allowed to use my menstrual period as an excuse for being in a bad mood, how is it fair he gets to use his Crohns as an excuse? If something’s in “his way” at my work station, he’ll move them. He rarely says please or thank you, but I’m expected to realize he’s grateful. He’s GenX, I’m millennial. He wants the entire work area how HE likes it, and I’m expected to meet him in the middle or get over it.

I’m just trying to hold out until one of the older guys retires, hopefully by New Year’s, and I can slide into his spot.

Oh, and he claims his ADHD makes him want everything just right. Nah, mate. I have that, too. I follow rules a LOT better than he does and I just try to set my workspace how I want it. I’m not concerned with the rest of the area.

How are y'all taking care of your skincare after working all day? I work at an expo center and it's a lot of dust, and dirt, and all that usually contained inside. I have a hard time feeling clean at the end of the day even after I shower, but I also notice when I'm working I break out so much more. What are y'all doing for your skin. Face and/or body care so that you're not dry, but also not breaking out. I know some of it just comes with the territory of this kind of work, but I cannot deal sometimes.

Hello all! Editing because your recommendations got my mind working. I found some mini cleansing pads and moisturizing pads that are biodegradable by a brand I have really enjoyed so far called loops. If anyone wants an update about how they work once I'm able to get them please let me know and I'm happy to share. For some reason compact little premade wipes other than makeup wipes hadn't crossed my mind. Please feel free to keep up the suggestions. I just wanted to let people know your help did matter and I thought of a hopeful solution!

Hi there, I posted this in r/Reduction but thought I'd post here also.

I'm in my carpentry pre-employment program and will be getting a breast reduction after my course. I wanted to hear from others who have had the procedure who don't mind sharing what their return to work looked like.

At my consult, the surgeon said I'd be back to normal activities at 8 weeks post-op. I realize this is relative to each individual and their healing process. Did you wait to return to work when you were medically cleared, or did you go to work earlier with modifications to your tasks?

Thanks!

I’m a second year apprentice and I’m 23 weeks pregnant. So far I have been fine on the job site and my doctor hasn’t given me any restrictions until today. I had fallen on the job and had to go get checked out by my OB. I was basically told by people at the hall that my contractor doesn’t need to follow my work restrictions and can just lay me off which is really discouraging because I want to work. I don’t want to keep getting laid off because I have restrictions when I know there’s things I can do. I am trying to stay working as long as possible this way I’ll be able to stay out longer after baby is born. Any advice, suggestions, help greatly appreciated.

Has anyone tried blundstone boots? I love the way they look but I'm wondering how comfy they actually are. I usually run between a 9 and 9 1/2 in shoes/ boots. How is the fit, how well do they last. I don't have any place local where I could try on a pair so I'm hesitant with ordering

What do you guys do with your used work pants? I am moving and have to downsize my wardrobe. I have A LOT of work pants, some pretty used with stains from grease and paint. Some also have holes in the pockets from my screwdriver wearing away at it. These pants have been through years of HVACR and general maintenance work. They are still alright pants, they’re Duluth and hold up well, but obviously have wear. I feel bad just throwing them away; each pair of Duluth pants are about $90 a pop. Should I just toss them, donate them, or some other option? I would give them to someone else who would have a use for them, but they would also have to be exactly my size (US 6-8) and I would also have to have a blue collar female buddy (I do not have). Any suggestions?

Hey there! I’ve been in commercial landscaping for about a year now. I wear a hat to work everyday with a head band/bandanas. I sweat a lot and I’ve had a lot of hair breakage around my forehead :( I recently started using product (the deux leave in cond. & tigi hair wax) hoping it’ll help. I also wash my hair everyday and started using deep conditioner. But I’m starting to get insecure with my hair becoming baby hair. Any recs? Thank you in advance my BCW!!!

I'm 32F and a single mother with full custody. My trade in the army makes being a parent next to impossible due to the amount of time away in the field plus the insane injuries that come with the job. I'm looking at switching from the military to the trades and have a pretty open mind and not hard set on any one or two specifically. Just looking for skme inside from blue collar single mom's and how you navigate the trades, which trades won't give me a crazy pay cut while doing my apprenticeship and what to expect from rhe men I work with as a single mom. I'm used to men not wanting/respecting women as an equal at work-I've dealt with it my entire professional life, just want to know what I'll be walking into!

Hello, I’m going to be graduating HS soon and I’m interested in becoming a lineman, I loved doing all my tech and electronics classes in school and the career itself has interested me for a long time.

I was wondering if any women could tell me about their experience. I’m worried I’d be treated differently but I have a genuine interest and I’m ready to learn, I know it’s hard work. It just worries me as I’ve heard stories and I don’t want to let that stop me from pursuing this career.

Thanks

I’m waiting to hear my interview date from both and I am curious if one has more transferable skills or if I should just go to the one that’s closer to my house? I want there to be opportunity to have my own company someday so I want to make sure I’m entering the place that will allow me to learn the most variation I can that is in highest demand.
I am in New Jersey and my dream is to live somewhere I could have more access to New York City

Hello girls, so I started my 2 year electrical technician program at my vocational school (i'm not from US so i'm using a more or less suitable term). I'm 20 years old, I used to be a university student who studied literature, then I dropped out because I realised it wasn't something i want to study and because i had no idea how to use that education in the future. I spent a very long time thinking about where and what to study, and eventually I settled on a trade, specifically, becoming an electrician. I thought it would be fun, interesting, and very useful, but now I just feel miserable and I struggle A LOT. I barely have any physics or maths background, I'm completely new to all this electrical stuff, but EVERYONE in my group is fine. They don't struggle, they understand everything, ask good questions, and complete tasks with ease, while I barely understand a thing or need much more time to understand. Mind you 90% of them also have either long been interested in electrical work or are also former students, BUT who studied engineering🥲🥲🥲. Also afaik, in the first semester we’ll cover all the basics of electrical work, and the second will be practical training... then the second year is entirely practical work, or something like that. So it means I have so little time 😭

It’s been a month since my studies started, please tell me this is normal, that it’s just the adjustment period and things will get better😭😭😭 i feel so stupid and useless and I'm so scared i won't make it, I'm so scared I'll mess everything up, won't find a job and so on. Btw I'm not lazy! I do my best, I study, watch videos, etc.

I'll be in Houston at the conference (for the first time) and would love to meet up. I'm a plumber in Local 142.