I am interested in knowing the opinions men in the heavy equipment industry have regarding women working in this industry in any other capacity than secretary, office work, clean up, etc. Construction equipment sales and repairs, in my experience, have been male territory, though I know women who work alongside men just fine. Is it attitude? Intelligence? Capability? Experience? Things you would not want to see? Any previous experiences you could share? Considerations? Thank you. Would really appreciate your thoughts on it. Consider this a survey. Thank you.
In 30 years I have seen all types of talent and ambition, no different than the men in the industry. The thing that gives women a bad name in some areas is that the employer keeps them to maintain there minority quota even if the person is not worth a sh*t. We never kept any minority that did not perform, no different than any non minority male on the job. We had a gal scraper operator in N.D. running a 660 Cat in the 1970s that could show up 3/4 of the men on the job. She earned her money and she stayed when work got show.
Agree with old-iron, It'snot the sex or race that matters, it's how they do the job. Every one needs to be held to the same standards and document the failures of every one the same and should be no real problems. The times a boss's hunting buddy screws up and it gets swept under the rug then someone else does the same thing and gets the book thrown at them is how you get in deep do-do!
Desire and ambition are everything. I've seen women that, given the chance to learn, became better at the job than their mentors and that would include just about every aspect of the business from shovel labor, operator, truck driver, right through to equipment sales, parts, even top notch service techs here and there. Like any worker, it's all about the attitude and finding out what their natural talents are.
It's free country , nothin stopping anyone from success if they want it bad enough . My opinion is.................. Don't put to much stock in opinions . LoL ! Forget about what anyone might think & figure out a job that you like & excel at & do your best with what you have at the time . That's my non opinion answer . HEO girl might chime in . HeavyEquipmentForums
I watched a woman run a open cab scraper a bunch of years ago out in the Pasco, Washington area. She probably missed a half a dozen loads by the end of the day compared to the men that were running similar machines. Probably being six month pregnant slowed her down. About every hour or so she had to stop and use the rest room. I forgot to mention that the temperature got up to about 100 F. I don't have any problems with performance like that. I'm sure that a couple of men only stayed there working because she held out through it. My other thought though was what kind of kid was born after that kind of ride. I can imagine that it must have been like living in a salt shaker.
I have a girl help me often, and sometimes she does a better job than a man because she listens, doesn't act like she knows everything, and doesn't make small jobs and tasks a competition. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Cant hire young males around here, they are too busy hanging out and having fun. I need extra help, I know of a few girls that show up on time to kick ass.
Men or Women, Some got it some don't. As long as your safe, I will work with you.
Given the fact that most women can do more things at once than any man, I would think that could go a long way toward making them good equipment operators. And because most modern equipment uses pilot or E-H controls, needing a lot of strength like a male operator of years gone by should not be required. So, I'm surprised there aren't more women operators!! The only negative I can think of is it has been my observation that many women don't seem to have good "spatial awareness", i.e., the ability to sense where the boundaries of their vehicle or machine is. I don't know whether this is due to lack of practice/experience or whether it's just "wired in" biologically. Either way, I would think it could be overcome with practice.
Thank you for these comments. Much appreciated! I value your thoughts.
I agree with everyone above. It doesn't matter man or woman if they can do the job they stay. However, I will say this. We are a woman owned company but we are not a certified wbe yet. I have to do most of the talking g with customers and contractors because they don't like to hear the reality of their circumstances from a woman. I think it is ridiculous but it happens quite often. The other thing that I notice is they will hire us if I show up with the quote but we won't get the job if she goes. It is crazy because all I do is show up with her estimates... I have a feeling once we are certified it will all change.
Women operators I find women to be easier to train than men, as a rule. May be because they stay with you rather going ahead with preconceived notions.
I have a feeling nothing will change with certification, prejudice is inherent and mostly subconscious. It's learned, and can be unlearned. Time and experience/exposure will slowly teach your customers to trust and respect the owner. My advice would be to bring her along whenever you're bidding/estimating for a repeat customer to allow them a chance to get used to the idea. It's not fair, but you can't force people to change their perceptions and attitudes, you have to let them come to it naturally. A point lost on most people I'm afraid.
We have a young lady apprentice at work right now and she's doing excellent, she's keen, eager and willing to learn, doesn't have a sense of entitlement or acts like a know-it-all, she knows she's starting at the bottom. A lot of young people now (in my experience anyways) seem to think they're worth $75K/yr right fresh out of school and that what they learned at school is the way the real world works and they have no desire to learn or listen to what someone with 15 or more years experience has to say. That sort of attitude doesn't work for me, I don't care if you're a man or a woman. If you're willing to learn, show good drive and ambition, you get along with everyone well and do what's expected of you then I'll be happy to work with you.
I've worked with quite a few women over the last 30 years, most pretty good hands, 2 or 3 not so much, but overall I've had good experiences. I have to agree somewhat with the spatial awareness thing stated above, but OTOH, I've also found that they tend to have a lighter touch around machinery, not forcing a move and busting something up. Often they'll ask if they suspect something's wrong, and aren't shy about asking for help instead of bulling through a situation and possibly mucking things up. A couple I worked with were very personable but as tough as anyone I've ever been around, a fact not lost on a GC or two who tried to pull rank unnecessarily. I've lived in an area where people are really accepting if you're a decent human being and don't expect special treatment because you happen to be a particular gender and/or color. As anywhere, there are exceptions, but overall if you pull your weight, learn, work at things to get proficient and don't mind a little off-color banter in the off hours you'll do just fine. Pitching in and helping without having to be told is big, too. I'm far more interested in a person's ability to learn, willingness to work, and attention to detail than what sex they happen to be. My Dad put things best, he often told me, "If you don't know what you're doing, find someone who does and then do what they do."
I agree with everything above. I have my personal opinions in regards to women mechanics but I will hold out on that. Its safe to say that ANYONE can do anything they put their mind to regardless of who or what you are. 10 years ago my ex-girlfriend and I made the decisions to get our acts together and go to trade schools, I wanted to be a diesel mechanic and she always had the dream of being an underwater welder. Fast forward 2 short years later, we broke up but she got on with Local 34 pile drivers in the Bay Area as a pretty successful underwater welder/commercial diver. We dont talk anymore but it was pretty amazing to see how fast she pushed through and did it despite all odds, and there were a lot of odds!!!
"I agree with everything above. I have my personal opinions in regards to women mechanics but I will hold out on that." Then why make that statement? What's wrong with women mechanics?
interesting reading...
An old boss I had said, something the best man for the job, is a woman . I think Joe was right , Lol..
My input is different from everyones.....as a mechenical designer, I can't pick who I work for or with, everyone is a customer, be it male, female or a litte green man from mars. I have to get along with everyone turn out a finished project. I've never found a female engineer any different to work for.....they know their job and are qualified. Many years ago my employer hired a young lady as a detailer, hands down best one I ever had work for me. Explain the job, let her go, very nice drawings (no cad, still pencil & paper). Correct tolerances, fits, etc....... Ed
speaking only for myself, i, in no way try to compare myself to a man. everyone has their place in this world. do i think i can do a mans job? why would i? do i think i can do this one...i know i can. i believe that anyone with the willingness to listen and learn, to those who want to share their knowledge, can do anything, if they really want to.
My wife is a mechanic at Pape (a Kenworth truck dealer) in Stockton. She was hired on the spot with great pay. She works mostly as "triage tech", using laptops to diag different systems, Cummins and Paccar engines mostly. The fact is, she's good at what she does, she comes home and tells me about repairs she did and I don't even really know what she's talking about, ie: sensors and systems I have never even heard of. Everyone respects her and its awesome. The other fact is, girls (women) are often times just as good if not better than men given they don't use there stubborness and egos to get the job done, which can tend to poor decision making, wasted time and $$$, and broken sh*t. The other fact is, when it come to some of the heavier nasty work, pulling components in the summer heat, laying on gravel, working with minimal tools, while coolant and hot oil drip all over your face and hair, send a man in to do it! I just don't like the thought of my wife getting all dirty like that (though she has) I want her to get paid for her smarts!!
First off, with all due respect, cute looking wife, you lucky SOB...even better she can fix stuff...I know plenty of women I rather do work with( in many fields) than some men I know...everyone has their place in the work force..back in the WWI and WWII..guess who worked the factories building all the great equipment the guys used....women..because most of the men were at war...its just the way society has evolved in most places that the norm is men go out and do the heavy dirty work, but in reality the women can keep up or do better .....
The willingness to listen and learn is the KEY. Most all of us want to share what we know with someone who WANTS to learn. It makes teaching a joy !!! As for the female part, here's an example. I worked with some Ironheads years ago who told me they would rather have a woman on the crane. They knew a woman was not going to hurt them by being a cowboy and getting in a hurry. See? Oh, and the pic is my daughter. Good luck to you ! Sleddog
I think its great that more women want to get into non-traditional careers.
My daughter is a civil engineer. She has always been fast and accurate starting with her internship with my employer. Not only that she knows the budget and stays within it. She is working for a consulting engineering company and does a lot of small projects for a small city. It still happens regularly that a contractor will call with a question on the plans and the receptionist will transfer the call to her. Once they hear a female voice, they say I want to talk to the engineer. When she says she is the engineer, some still want to talk with a man.
Some of best belly dump drivers I've worked with have been women, the actually try to do what the dump man says.