A Question for Those with Masculine Jobs...

[ChattanCat]

I work on the Rail road (insert railroad horns here). Ok, I am a design engineer for a supplier to the RR. I gotta say, it is a man's environment from the engineers to the maintainers who swing sledge hammers... working on the railroad...

[Shinchan]

I'm in Law Enforcement. I braved the kilt last week at a BBQ honoring the memory of a fallen hero. With more than three hundred present, I had nothing but good comments. I also attended the Highland games today in Fresno with two of my co-workers, and they continue to say how much they dig it. It won't be an issue.

[KiltedSurveyor]

As you can tell by my moniker, I'm a land surveyor. I have worn my kilts to my jobs. The first time I wore it to work, I had some questions and a few disbelieving head shakes from my contact at one of the engineering firms I do a lot of work for, but I think most everyone that knows me knows that I am a little different. I've had people obviously talking about me when I show up in a kilt, but surprisingly several people said that they had seen Utilikilts featured on the DYI network Cool Tools segments, and others have said that they heard about kilts from their sons/daughters. Mostly what I hear is that the kilt works for me, but they don't think they could pull the look off. That said, there are some jobs I do I definitely would not wear a kilt to: jobs where I may encounter large amounts of saw briars, blackberry bushes, stinging nettle etc...

[Mr. Kilt]

When I was driving a transit bus alot of my coworkers knew I wore kilts. I often wore them into the bus garages if I had to go there on my days off. Most people thought they were cool, a few made "funny" comments that weren't meant to be mean.

[druid]

Dept of Corrections here. I cannot wear it at work but I have worn it to outside-of-work (physically, outside the building) functions.

2 Officer Funerals, wearing my Black Watch Kilt.
1 Officer's Father's funeral.
3 officer Weddings, wearing my Black Watch and my Hotwheels Kilt (at the after-party).

Now I have my Family Tartan I can also wear.

[Tetley]

Just to put the opposite slant on things, I work as a programmer in an almost entirely female dominated retail sector, lingerie. Of the 400+ employees only about 20 are male. Believe me, the ladies can be as raunchy as any man I've come across and if you cross them they can metaphorically flay your skin off as well as any drill sergeant.

I wear my kilt all the time and so far only one negative comment from the ladies at work and that from a lassie who just doesn't like kilt and that wasn't really negative, just that she doesn't like kilt.

[Cassidy]

I wear my kilt all the time and so far only one negative comment from the ladies at work and that from a lassie who just doesn't like kilts and that wasn't really negative, just that she doesn't like kilts.

I never really understood this line of thinking. I've met some girls who just insisted they didn't like kilts, although perhaps it may have just been that they were embarrassed by them. But for someone to just genuinely not like them, for no particular reason, baffles me a bit.

I'll say this as well. If someone is truly and honestly offended at the suggestion that a career can be considered masculine, I really feel quite bad for them, as they must feel offended quite a lot of the time. We're here on a forum reclaiming the most masculine garment of all- perhaps this is not the place to suggest that all things are exactly suited for all genders.

[Nighthawk]

I never really understood this line of thinking. I've met some girls who just insisted they didn't like kilts, although perhaps it may have just been that they were embarrassed by them. But for someone to just genuinely not like them, for no particular reason, baffles me a bit.

I'll say this as well. If someone is truly and honestly offended at the suggestion that a career can be considered masculine, I really feel quite bad for them, as they must feel offended quite a lot of the time. We're here on a forum reclaiming the most masculine garment of all- perhaps this is not the place to suggest that all things are exactly suited for all genders.

I agree. There are, weather we like it or not, some occupations that carry a gender specific stigma. The neon blowers where I work, for example, think it's extremely odd that they have a woman on their crew. Women just don't bend neon, or work construction, etc etc. Is it right that this thinking exists? I won't say. But the fact remains that this kind of attitude does in fact exist, and there is no better way to discuss than to discuss it honestly, weather that honesty hurts someone's delicate sensibilities or not.

[Thunderbolt]

I'll say this as well. If someone is truly and honestly offended at the suggestion that a career can be considered masculine, I really feel quite bad for them, as they must feel offended quite a lot of the time. We're here on a forum reclaiming the most masculine garment of all- perhaps this is not the place to suggest that all things are exactly suited for all genders.

I agree. There are, weather we like it or not, some occupations that carry a gender specific stigma. The neon blowers where I work, for example, think it's extremely odd that they have a woman on their crew. Women just don't bend neon, or work construction, etc etc. Is it right that this thinking exists? I won't say. But the fact remains that this kind of attitude does in fact exist, and there is no better way to discuss than to discuss it honestly, weather that honesty hurts someone's delicate sensibilities or not.

I agree also.

T.

[davedove]

I never really understood this line of thinking. I've met some girls who just insisted they didn't like kilts, although perhaps it may have just been that they were embarrassed by them. But for someone to just genuinely not like them, for no particular reason, baffles me a bit.

It's quite possible she just doesn't like the way they look. Everyone has different tastes, and sometimes you just can't explain them. I been in situations before where people were saying how great something was, but I just didn't get it.

Although I suspect her dislike is more that kilts are outside of the norm and just don't fit into her worldview.