h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

aaaaaarrrrrggggggggggggggggghhhhhhhhhhhhhh!

As you may know I work for a completely sexist (and possibly racist) company.

Since January we have more than doubled the number of staff. Which is nice, because now I'm only doing the job of 2 people instead of 4. In my office (we have 6 guys downstairs doing technical stuff, who are all assistants - at the moment at least - but they don't count because that's "guy work") anyway... in my office we have 7 women and 10 guys

Guess how many and which ones are Managers (Senior Managers to a man... oops, that was a giveaway) and how many and which ones have penisis? (penii?)

So, I am learning (with my new work/life balance plan) to live with that - take the money and run. But still... now some of these newbies have been there 6 months and their probationary time is over. It's traditional in Germany that when you get your permanent contract you bring cake or something (we have sekt too, and today it was a full blown buffet lunch because 2 did it together)

That's nice

The HR guy sends out a mail to all, congratulating the newbies.

That's nice, too.

But today it was for one of the wee girlys (she's only 22) who is one of the Logistics Assistants, and a guy from the accounting department (agreed, he has a lot of experience) but in the middle of the HR guy's congratulatory male, is the fact (as I guessed it would go down, but still...) in BIG FAT LETTERS that this guy is now a Senior Manager.

No shit, Sherlock?

So then the Logistics Senior Manager sent a mail, cc to all "welcome to the managers club"

So how many of the girlys do you reckon it took to hold me down and stop me hitting the "reply all" button after I wrote "are girls invited to the club or don't we have enough dangly bits?"

aaaaaaaaarrrrrrrrrrgggggggggghhhhhhhhh!

(change of job not likely, I've been looking since January, there is nothing. And it really is money for old rope - and there is the exciting weight-loss aspect of the job)

Is there no-one that you can complain to officially or otherwise about the sexism Sho? (I have to admit to being blissfully unaware of office politics!)

If sexism is that rife, could you not bring a legal case against them?


Ack, look at me trying to fix your problems for you, when all you probably want to do is have a good rant.

Go ahead hon, have a good .

Next time you have a team meeting give 'em an Eowyn speech.

Or one of Theoden's. Make sure you wave a sword around. A lot. It always helps me feel better.

Sorry to hear about your work situation, Sho. Would that I could help out. If it makes any difference, Mrs G works in a company where you need boobs to be a low to mid level manager. They're working on the upper to director level stuff which is still exclusively male (with shears, as I understand it). Apparently none of the men seem to mind working for women and none of the lads who are being blocked from promotion to team leads by the policy of putting women in these roles first seems to have noticed.

Not that it's an official policy.
But the people who decide on who gets the job are female.

Thanks Fynn... be very thankful you don't have to fight every day with the "I want to work and I want to get on" thing I have going.

Although, it's not all the time, and I have to admit that I really don't want to change jobs, because I do actually like what I do (it's not boring) and because the girls/women I work with are fantastic. We make a very good team.

Gradient: good for Mrs Gradient's company. I work for Koreans. That may explain all or most of what I have to contend with!

Still, in 2 weeks time I'll be on the last leg of a three day trip to Croatia. So what do I care?

It's working well for Mrs G, who recently got a new post and a pay rise!

A three day trip to Croatia! Well, indeed, why are you all that worried? I'm quite happy to join in the "sexist managers" rants any time you like having seen it in action.

How long before people get it? Put the best person for the job in the job and it'll get done. What difference does genetalia really make?

The journey is spread over three days my vacation is actually 2 and a half weeks (up to now we've had to beg, grovel and plead to get more than a week at a time - now we have a few more Germans, and one of the managers is German - we have managed to persuade the company that, actually, in Germany it's normal to take a 3 week summer vacation - not the exception)

I can't wait

Oh, and I have to say, that I take back the racist comment. They are not racist. We have all sorts of nationalities working at my place.

As for the time when everyone will realise. Hmm, hard one. There was a post in the Tolkien/Racist thread today that put it succinctly. The Suffragettes fought for the vote, their daughters fought for the right to work, their granddaughters fought for the right to equal pay and their great granddaughters are fighting against the glass ceiling. Everything takes time (mind you, if some the girlies I work with are anything to go by, the fight has stopped. they don't see that there is any inequality!! Until I point out to them the manager/assistant thing...)

sigh