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 Message Boards » » Women & Manual Labor Page [1]  
BridgetSPK
#1 Sir Purr Fan
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So I've only seen like wives and girlfriends helping out their men on job. How many women do manual labor?

I love plumbing, but that's kind of an indoor thing. Also, it requires education that I'm not sure I wanna invest in quite yet.

I want to work outside with my hands, and I want to train on the job.

How do you break into that club? Where do I start? I just think it's kinda hard to get an employer to take me seriously--not because I'm a woman but because I don't really come off as the reliable or committed type. Like, I need someone to take a chance on me, you know? How do I make this happen?

I really don't wanna clean houses or any of that other manual shit women tend to get stuck with.

This is actually kind of serious. I think about this a lot. Everybody talks about going to school and living a life of the mind. But I think my true happiness might be in keeping it physical. And I don't have the body for pole dancing.

[Edited on March 1, 2009 at 4:15 AM. Reason : sss]

3/1/2009 4:09:01 AM

Willy Nilly
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just do it

3/1/2009 4:12:39 AM

BridgetSPK
#1 Sir Purr Fan
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So I just walk up to some foreman and ask if his boss is hiring?

3/1/2009 4:15:10 AM

BridgetSPK
#1 Sir Purr Fan
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Why did I make this thread?

I am stupid.

Goodnight, TWW.

3/1/2009 4:18:09 AM

Willy Nilly
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lol... Get stoned and then spend your whole paycheck at a hardware store. Repeat.

3/1/2009 4:19:33 AM

Woodfoot
All American
60354 Posts
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Quote :
"WOMEN'S

LOVE

PLUMBING"

3/1/2009 4:25:45 AM

EuroTitToss
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4791 Posts
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yes, they do. see:

3/1/2009 6:09:11 AM

beatsunc
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take some classes at wake tech. you dont want to do manual labor, you want skilled labor

3/1/2009 10:00:24 AM

ncsuapex
SpaceForRent
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Keep it in the kitchen and the laundry room.

3/1/2009 10:04:47 AM

ALkatraz
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Quote :
"I love plumbing, but that's kind of an indoor thing"


Obligatory: Lay some pipe. HEYOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!




Commercial plumbing is not an indoor thing. You can find residential plumbing contractors to work for, but there tons of commercial plumbers in the area too. Also, it is usually not an indoor job. I'm currently doing special inspections on a job site at WakeMed at the new parking deck. As soon as we had the foundations in, the plumbers were out there digging trenches and laying stormwater pipe and then backfilling.

Later on, after we had some of the super structure up, they were out there hanging pipe from the ceilings. Lifting 8" ductile iron pipe in 8' lengths up to the ceiling on ladders and holding it there until you get it in the brackets is very labor intensive and not an easy task.

It sounds like you need to research what kind of plumbing you want to do, then decide whether or not to do it.

3/1/2009 10:30:56 AM

arghx
Deucefest '04
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unless you get certifications and such that is a hard, relatively low paying, blue collar life. my grandpa was a master plumber with an associates in engineering and started his own company, but he did the manual labor stuff for a few years.

you should look into becoming a plumbing estimator

3/1/2009 10:48:30 AM

TroopofEchos
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I've been up on ladders drilling into concrete for the past few weeks
I fucking hate heights
my hands sweat and the ladder shakes, I don't know how i haven't fallen off and drilled a hole in myself yet

other than that I used to work on a chicken farm doing farm type things. . . .

[Edited on March 1, 2009 at 11:08 AM. Reason : I say do it, it is relatively satisfying]

3/1/2009 11:07:45 AM

OopsPowSrprs
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You can come wash my dishes if you want.

3/1/2009 12:17:17 PM

Chop
All American
6271 Posts
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get a degree in civil or mechanical engineering. you'll be a glorified carpenter or plumber/mechanic, respectively.

3/1/2009 12:23:40 PM

ALkatraz
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The three things you need to know about plumbing:

1. Hot on the left
2. Cold on the right
3. Shit runs downhill

3/1/2009 12:24:48 PM

gtcastee
Veteran
124 Posts
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4. Pay day's on Friday

my grandpa was a plumber and he worked until the day he died. then my uncle took over the business and i worked for him for a couple summers. you're prolly not gonna make that much money unless you own the business or you're a foreman or pm for a big contractor or somethin. if i hadn't gone to college i'd be plumbin. i enjoy it a lot.

3/4/2009 5:59:14 PM

mdozer73
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I work for a Utility Contractor (yes, running hoes, laying pipe). We install water mains, sewer mains, storm drain piping, mechanical utilities (steam, chilled water), and some electrical ductbank and light grading.

a couple of questions:

1- do you speak english?

2- do you know what a shovel is?

3- do you like working outside when it is hotter than 100 deg F and colder than 30?

4- are you comfortable with heights and depths? (> 10' high on a ladder and > 10' deep in a trench)

If you answered yes to these questions, pm me and I will tell you where to come pickup an application. Laborer pay starts at about $10/HR, being able to speak english should get a little more than that.

we pay on Fridays and we train on the job.

if you know what OSHA Subpart P is, that should be worth at least $1/HR more.

right now, we do not have any women working in the field, but I have seen several on some of the projects I have worked on.

the only difference in what we do and what a plumber does, is the proximity to the building and the size of the pipe we lay (har har, ours is bigger).

3/4/2009 6:41:38 PM

Prawn Star
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Women usually don't last long in manual labor. The work is too tough. The women that do stick around usually end up as machine operators, truck drivers, project engineers, etc.

3/4/2009 6:45:23 PM

ThePeter
TWW CHAMPION
37709 Posts
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Quote :
"I work for a Utility Contractor (yes, running hoes, laying pipe). "


Now we're talking.

3/4/2009 6:52:19 PM

Tiberius
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the puns in that post made me lol

wolfweb best use of bad puns 2009 nominee

3/4/2009 7:01:12 PM

Nerdchick
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Quote :
"The women that do stick around usually end up as machine operators, truck drivers, project engineers, etc."


lol ... so do men. those positions pay more and are normally given to people who stick around. I imagine men like higher paying, easier work just as much as women

3/4/2009 7:19:13 PM

LivinProof78
All American
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i, too, enjoy manual labor...

but i'm more into farming than plumbing

3/4/2009 7:22:47 PM

twoozles
All American
20735 Posts
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i think chasing children around all day and cleaning up their poopies is manual labor enough

3/4/2009 7:25:02 PM

GoldenGirl
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6475 Posts
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I've actually done a lot for a woman. Mine is mainly construction though. I can tile, sheet rock, do carpet etc.
I've actually REALLY handy which is always a good thing.

3/4/2009 8:01:04 PM

ScHpEnXeL
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I've never seen a woman hang Sheetrock (assuming that's what you mean). That's pretty hardcore..that shit is heavy.

3/4/2009 8:03:34 PM

GoldenGirl
All American
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yup did it last week with my dad and it was ceiling not wall Sheetrock. Got scared b.c. it really almost fell on us. I don't care if it hit me but i didn't want my dad to be hurt.

3/4/2009 8:05:26 PM

BridgetSPK
#1 Sir Purr Fan
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I'm not crazy, by the way. This isn't a job I'd want to do forever. I value a back that doesn't hurt.

But this has always been a dream of mine, and I think can adjust to heights and 100 degree weather.

mdozer73, I'm going to start looking for work in about four months. I'll PM you then? I dunno though. What you're describing seems a lot harder than what I envisioned.


[Edited on March 4, 2009 at 8:30 PM. Reason : ]

3/4/2009 8:07:46 PM

Prawn Star
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Quote :
"lol ... so do men. those positions pay more and are normally given to people who stick around. I imagine men like higher paying, easier work just as much as women"


You don't become a truck driver, operator or project engineer after working as a laborer for a few years. You become a pipelayer or foreman. Then after that is superintendent, typically. The positions I see women working out on the jobsite require you to sit on your ass, not bust your ass.

A foreman or superintendent will make more money than any of the positions I named. Yet I've never met a female foreman or superintendent on any of the worksites I've been on. It's very rare when a woman lasts more than a few weeks working the kind of tough, manual labor that constitutes entry level, non-skilled work in construction.

3/4/2009 9:39:16 PM

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