Women Doing A "Man's Work"

This morning on the Today Show there was a segment entitled, "Women Doing A Man's Work." The segment concerned NEW-The Nontraditional Employment For Women program in NYC. While I commend the organization for its training program, I get pissed about the age-old characterization of "women's work" and "man's work." Women have performed "man's work" since the dawn of humankind. Just because a woman can be "trained" to pick up a blowtorch and weld copper pipe doesn't make it "man's work." Yes, I know that plumbing has been typically a man's job but I think classifying it so demeans the women performing that work. Look a lady can do it too! I am shocked.

A few years ago, I had a new floor put in the kitchen. The "men's" crew who initially installed it did a horrid job and the wood started separating at the seams. I called another company, recommended by a friend, to fix it. Two ladies arrived at the door and not only could they tell me the name of the other company that put down the floor by looking at the inferior work, they did a far superior job. It wasn't about "man's work," it concerned who could do a better job.

I would hope in this age we could just call it WORK, not identify it by sex. I guess that is too much for many to fathom.

While the segment is very uplifting for the women involved, the stamping of "man's work" all over the screen continues the idea that women are only capable of certain roles and somehow these ladies are different.

Here's the segment.