Granted, there are some menial jobs in the field, But when you take into consideration the mathmatical skills (angles, weight, measurements, blue prints) the knowledge of regulations, running large crews, the ability to operate the high-tech tools and machinery, staying on top of state of the art technology (radiant heat,etc)risking their lives for their trade, on top of being able to meet deadlines and budgets, how can people assume they are uneducated? They sit in their air conditioned office (which wouldnt be there if not for them) and type data into a program that does the calculations for them, yet look down on these people. It's not as if you just pick up a drill and suddenly know how to run duct work efficiently or rebuild an AC unit.
i have a semi-office job, but have nothing but respect for the people responsible for giving us the buildings and skylines we admire but give no credit for.
2007-11-29 01:09:53 · 13 answers · asked by Anonymous in Politics & Government ➔ Other - Politics & Government
Sorry Yun, i shouldve said "most of the white collar folks, especially on these forums", as i asked the question due to immigration arguments where they act as if construction is beneath them and something to be ashamed of.
2007-11-29 03:10:05 · update #1
I also didn't say I agree w/ it, but there is an undeniable class division between the guy in a suit and the guy in a hard hat.
2007-11-29 03:16:27 · update #2
I have found the same attitude in alot of white collar people I know. My answer to them has always been that they wouldn't have a house or condo to live in or a office to work out of, no bridges, damns for hydro, subways, streets, or heaven forbid, a place to buy your coffee in the morning. If it wasn't for the construction workers, where would we be? The white collars would be rendered useless. Everything has a balance and a place. You need both to survive.
2007-11-29 01:20:39 · answer #1 · answered by snowcell77@rogers.com 2 · 2⤊ 1⤋
I have worked on the regulatory side of construction and manufacturing for several years now. I worked as a safety inspector in heavy construction for the first 4 years of that. I've seen many different types of people and the best answer for you question is that people in general are not able to reason well. There are construction workers who are capable and there are ones who are smart, and there are many who are stupid. It's generalization by society for the most part. I give these men great respect because I would not want to trade jobs with them. I have met some brilliant men working construction because they wanted physical work and were bored at a desk. I've met many more who just for one reason or another hadn't the opportunity for anything else despite the mental capacity to do a great deal more. Finally, I have met many people in construction who would not hesitate to commit to some of the most ridiculous acts of stupidity that my mind was completely unable to comprehend. I've learned that no matter how stupid and irresponsible the act may appear, there is one man on every construction site that will try it at some point. Not to mention the fact that many feel totally free to be as rude as they like to women who pass by the site. Basically there are good and bad but it's often the bad who stand out and most of the time the bad don't end up in office jobs they end up on construction sites.
2007-11-29 01:28:54 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 0⤋
I know what you mean. My fiance has a 160 IQ and he has worked in the trades for a dozen years with the same company. He does fiber optic wiring and cabling in new schools and large new business buildings. He prefers it to an office type job because his mind is free to work on thinking about his writing projects while doing it and he has more flexible hours. He has finished several science fiction books and written musicals, music albums and done his music touring this way.
They bid by the job not necessarily the hours so he has a lot more free time than I do. He also uses trigonometry, geometry and calculus a lot more than I do. He dropped out of college when his mom died of cancer, found this job and decided he liked it.
My next door neighbor was an IT exec and dropped out of that field to become a contractor redoing houses, he makes the same or better money and spends more time with his family plus he owns his own business sets his own hours.
One of my nephews is also a very smart guy former army corp of engineers, he is a project manager for a construction company and makes 80,000 a year.
They don't necessarily make less money either.
What is with these silly thumbs down, I said nothing that insulted anyone!
2007-11-29 01:25:44 · answer #3 · answered by inzaratha 6 · 3⤊ 3⤋
I have been a white and blue collar worker, both at times are morons and they think that the other is a moron. As the money goes up the more the white collar's intelligence seem to go down. There are good people on both sides but at times they seem very few.
2007-11-29 11:11:22 · answer #4 · answered by Coop 366 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Working stiffs white and blue collar, are just another of the various classifications government and society uses to divide the masses. There is really no difference, both are just trying to feed their kids, survive and get by. It won't be until we humans grow beyond our need to classify that we truly begin to grow. In the final analysis all of these tags, classifications and various other social idioms mean nothing.
If the day comes when we as a race have messed up so bad, we have destroyed our environment to the point of killing ourselves. We will all die together regardless of skin, religion, or any of the other things we think are so important now.
2007-11-29 01:24:23 · answer #5 · answered by Tom H 4 · 2⤊ 0⤋
I have a "white-collar" job myself, but I get a kick out of hearing some secretary making $8 an hour making fun of the construction workers, because with their specialized training (welding, etc) and the unions, those guys are making three or four times what that secretary is making.
2007-11-29 01:14:18 · answer #6 · answered by BostonCollin28 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Based only on your question and using your "logic" (which isn't very logical), I might assume that people with "semi-office jobs" are morons too.
Why? Because you started with a false assumption. I am a "white collar folk" and I do not assume anything about construction workers. And I do not "look down on" them. So your whole premise is false.
I agree that most construction workers probably do a good job and help make my life easier. And I do a good job and help make their life easier too. Hope they don't "look down on" me for that.
2007-11-29 01:20:09 · answer #7 · answered by BC 6 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Such a broad generalization.
Why do so many blue collar people assume white collar people are stuck up?
I know a number of construction workers and other blue collar workers, and I don't think a single one of them is dumb.
The problem is the question here shows the same lack of thought that it decries. It puts people into classes and then tries to divide them, that's not profitable for anyone.
2007-11-29 01:11:41 · answer #8 · answered by Yun 7 · 3⤊ 2⤋
engineers go to college and they think they know everything under the sun, all they know is how to put stuff on paper, and construction workers are left to try and fix their screw ups out in the field. but i guess that college degree makes them "that much better" than the guy who actually make their half *** plans work.
i love it when i get into a meeting and make them look like total asses on something theyve dreamed up that wouldnt work
2007-11-29 01:14:48 · answer #9 · answered by adamc44 3 · 1⤊ 1⤋
Lots of people with a degree think they are superior... not all... there is some logical thinking that if one has schooling that they are a bit more intelligent... but that is not always true
2007-11-29 01:12:17 · answer #10 · answered by j b 4 · 3⤊ 1⤋