Blue -collar women at work: A poststructuralist feminist reading of gendered identities and materiality

This research project was designed to generate new insights into women's work-related experiences in male-dominated, blue-collar work environments. Focusing on women's communicative practices and social interactions yielded information about their efforts to successfully assimilate into the task and social contexts of their jobs. In order to enter and remain in this type of work environment, female workers have to carefully and consciously construct productive gender identities. This ongoing process involves negotiating the tensions between masculinities and femininities. Female workers must establish a masculine work identity that emphasizes their competence and ability to do the job. During this process, female workers often challenge and resist associations with femininity because these associations can undermine their work-related credibility and opportunities. Femininities, though, are commonly foregrounded in social relationships and can facilitate women's acceptance into the work group. Recognizing the complex intersections between masculinities and femininities in the work environment can help female workers construct useful identities that contribute to their employment success.