Ask HN: How male dominated is your workplace and does it bother you?

#1

Post by Wissenschaftler » Sat, Jul 30, 2022, 6:41 PM UTC

I personally find it really annoying that my whole adult life I have to live in environments with upwards of 75% male over representation. Then again I never worked with women so I do not know what it is like.

But for example, my social circle is much more gender balanced, and the atmosphere is much more pleasant when we are together. And I do not think it is because the people individually are different. I think it is just that in the workplace the is a lack of something to the social dynamics that women usually contribute.

Re: Ask HN: How male dominated is your workplace and does it bother you?

#2

Post by rmbyrro » Sat, Jul 30, 2022, 7:03 PM UTC

Perhaps another valid question is: should I bother about it?

Re: Ask HN: How male dominated is your workplace and does it bother you?

#3

Post by Dracophoenix » Sat, Jul 30, 2022, 7:07 PM UTC

A workplace requires different motivations, skills, expectations, and goals from those of a friend group. The qualities that make for a good worker in a tech company aren't necessarily going to make for a good fit as a friend.

Re: Ask HN: How male dominated is your workplace and does it bother you?

#4

Post by hotpotamus » Sat, Jul 30, 2022, 7:14 PM UTC

The company I work at currently is probably about 50/50 with the men more in tech and the women more in admin/support type roles. Leadership leans a bit female with a lady as our CEO. It feels less like a psychopathic cult than most other places I’ve worked so I’d say that’s a plus.

Re: Ask HN: How male dominated is your workplace and does it bother you?

#5

Post by superchroma » Sat, Jul 30, 2022, 7:17 PM UTC

Very male dominated. The culture is not good, men speak fast, often cut each other off and finish each other's sentences. There's a bit of blame and other negativity. I think women would probably find it uncomfortable if watching it on a TV. When there was a woman working with us, she was often put on a pedestal, given unequal room to talk but otherwise ignored and generally had lower expectations on her projects. I don't really know what to make of it, but probably we ought to change how we interact, as it's not approachable by someone who isn't also in a cutthroat mode where they are competing for airtime. I'm not sure why people treated a woman differently either; many of the men in the office have partners, I wonder if that was a factor.

Re: Ask HN: How male dominated is your workplace and does it bother you?

#6

Post by tamaharbor » Sat, Jul 30, 2022, 7:19 PM UTC

A major corporation I once worked for tried to convince us we were a family. We were not.

Re: Ask HN: How male dominated is your workplace and does it bother you?

#7

Post by tomohawk » Sat, Jul 30, 2022, 7:25 PM UTC

Very female dominated. If you're a white male, chances of promotion are not nearly as good as others.

Re: Ask HN: How male dominated is your workplace and does it bother you?

#8

Post by Wissenschaftler » Sat, Jul 30, 2022, 7:30 PM UTC

superchroma wrote: post #5

Very male dominated. The culture is not good, men speak fast, often cut each other off and finish each other's sentences. There's a bit of blame and other negativity. I think women would probably find it uncomfortable if watching it on a TV. When there was a woman working with us, she was often put on a pedestal, given unequal room to talk but otherwise ignored and generally had lower expectations on her projects. I…

I hate when other men turn everything into a competition.

Like, we are discussing something during a coffee break, something completely unrelated to our work. Some men still cannot resist turning it into an argument that they have to win. I am not interested in that. I value truth and intellectual honestly much higher.

Re: Ask HN: How male dominated is your workplace and does it bother you?

#9

Post by pksjoas » Sat, Jul 30, 2022, 7:31 PM UTC

Entirely male dominated except for our office manager / receptionist. But everyone is pleasant to work with so it's not a problem.

Very different to when I worked for a FAANG which was full of highly competitive, ruthless, borderline psychopathic men. Was very glad to leave that nest of snakes.

Re: Ask HN: How male dominated is your workplace and does it bother you?

#10

Post by Wissenschaftler » Sat, Jul 30, 2022, 7:34 PM UTC

rmbyrro wrote: post #2

Perhaps another valid question is: should I bother about it?

That question is what everyone already asks, right? That is the usual discussion, that you should be bothered by workspace imbalance because sexism is still present and the patriarch is oppressing women ... etc, that is not what I am asking.

I am asking what nobody asks. Does it bother the men themselves, that they have to work in a male dominated environment all the time.