Women have made many strides towards equality in the last couple decades. However, there still is not full equality in the workplace. This is not every workplace but there are industries where it is clear that it is male dominated. An example of this is the Music Business industry and even more specifically, the audio/tech section of it.
I have been an audio engineer for approximately four years now and I love it. That doesn't mean it's always peachy in the industry, though. It is clearly a male dominant industry and I see that everyday, but some days it is a struggle to deal with. I have worked in recording studios, as a stagehand, in theaters, and in audio offices. The point of this isn't to bash on all men in the industry because I have worked on many great team who are mostly guys and they're great. It is usually those who are not on our team but are partnered with us; it is those who do not take the time to know the girls they are working with and really hear us or give us a chance.
I'm a technician for one company and we are a team of approximately fourteen people. Three of those are girls (including myself). I also work as a website and social media manager for an audio systems company. We have a team of approximately 20 and there are two females (including myself). This is extremely common in this industry. In Nashville, Tennessee there are less than 5% of all professional producers and audio engineers whom are women. Let that sink in for a moment. Nashville is one of the largest cities for the music industry; imagine how that correlates to across the country.
The point of me writing about this is to let other women they're not alone in these experiences and to bring awareness that these situations are very real. These situations happen on a very regular basis.
1. Doubt.
This happens in many different ways. My freshmen year of college I was running a show as the technicians throughout the event. However, we have a handful of people who do set up and tear down. When people ask to speak to the head technician and I respond that it is myself, many people look very confused at this. Usually, they say "oh..." and move on with whatever they needed but say things like "are you sure you got it all" or "are you sure you can handle that?" Most of the shows I do on a college campus aren't very big compared to others and in my head, I want to sigh and say "yes, I'm not incompetent." I don't though because it's not professional. I always smile, nod, and say "of course, do you need anything else?" Or I will have them hovering over my shoulder while I work, making sure I don't screw up. This doesn't happen with my male co-workers. If anything, people go straight to them first rather than myself. People hold themselves differently when talking to me versus my male co-workers. The other girls on my teams and myself are talked down to almost or like we are children rather than professionals.
2. Not being taken seriously.
This is probably one of my biggest pet peeves. For many of the other companies, in our contracts, we are required to be able to live at least 50 lbs. This is extremely important because we work with large, heavy audio equipment. Our bosses don't want to have to constantly make sure we can lift equipment because they are busy with other things with the event. They are very confident in our ability to lift heavy things, even though I'm only a whopping 5' 4" and fairly small. Earlier this year my work was setting up a fraternity event on campus. My company was running the sound for the event, however, another company was running the lights, DJ, and stages. I was the only girl on this event with nine or so other guys. I was doing something with cables and when I walked back into the tent, on of the guys asked if I could help move the stage. These were the responses I and the guy who asked me received: "don't ask her to lift this, it's too heavy," "you shouldn't ask her to do that! It isn't chivalrous!" I'm sorry, but what does any of that have to do with my doing my job? My co-workers looked at each other and looked at me with wide eyes. I did my usual, smiled, picked up the stage with ease and responded: "are we moving this or not because I have a set up to finish." Another thing I get, and this is usually when I work as a stagehand for bigger shows, is when men say "you're too pretty to be a stage hand" or whatever position I'm working. This happened when I was working as a stagehand for Macklemore and Ryan Lewis. Many women who work as stage hands are very big, strong, women who are a little more masculine than myself. There is nothing wrong with that. However, I have a very feminine figure and I wear makeup when I work. This has NOTHING to do with my ability to do my job well. I was still lifting giant beams, heavy set equipment, and speakers that are twice the size of myself. And you know what, because of how well I do my job with this company, they're looking at promoting me.
3. Getting hit on and being presumed as a bitch when I reject them.
Do men just think that because I am a pretty girl working in this male industry that they have the right to interrupt my workflow just to hit on me? I'm not here to find a boyfriend. I have one. Please move along; do you job and I'll do mine. Also, stop touching me. If I'm working, don't set your hand on my waist or shoulder to tell me something flirtatious. I don't have time for that and I don't care. Then some of them get mad or frustrated that I rejected them. I don't understand why it is assumed that this kind of behavior is appropriate.
These are things I have experienced while working directly in the industry. I would never trade my job for anything but I will bring awareness to the treatment women and myself receive by some of our male co-workers.
