←back to thread

Only 5.3% of US welders are women. After years as a professor, I became one

(theconversation.com)
254 points Michelangelo11 | 2 comments | 06 Nov 24 00:24 UTC | HN request time: 0.537s | source
Show context
gaze ◴[06 Nov 24 01:23 UTC] No.42056630[source]▶
I just bought a gas lens set for my welder and it included cups called the BBW and the FUPA. When I was taking MIG classes, they had a jar of anti-spatter gel called cooter snot tip dip. Can’t imagine why women are so rare in the profession…

I’ve been a tourist in a number of different trades, and welding beats them all for hostility and resistance to safety practices. You get called a pussy for wearing a mask, but of course the manganese fumes from welding steel will give you brain damage. I’ve been advised to run cutoff wheels far above their rated RPM, which risks explosion. It’s sad because welding might as well some combination of knitting and calligraphy but with metal. It’s great.

replies(8): >>42056642 #>>42056696 #>>42056747 #>>42056898 #>>42057045 #>>42057653 #>>42064167 #>>42071009 #
1. jojobas ◴[06 Nov 24 03:23 UTC] No.42057045[source]▶
Then there's One-Eyed Snake something penetrating oil spray from the same company.

The idea that sexual innuendos somehow differently affect men and women is rather strange.

replies(1): >>42063414 #
2. jandrese ◴[06 Nov 24 15:05 UTC] No.42063414[source]▶
Women face higher consequences for pregnancy so you would expect attitudes towards sexual suggestion to be different. Also, when you're talking about a group where the gender ratio is like 20:1 the woman is going to be the butt of a disproportionate number of the jokes.