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Working Class Masculinity: Keeping Gay Men and Lesbians out of the Workplace

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Abstract

Recent survey research suggests that heterosexuals’ attitudes toward lesbian and gay rights have become more progressive. However, we find in our research that negative attitudes and barriers against gay men and lesbians in workplaces still remain. Our project represents one case study of hidden animosity toward homosexuals, which varies from “overt disgust” to “don’t ask, don’t tell” policies that reinforce negative attitudes toward gay men and lesbians. As such, we contend that attitudes toward lesbian and gay rights are not becoming more progressive; instead various methods of discrimination are increasingly being used to exclude gay men and lesbians from the workplace. We argue that White working class men have constructed and maintained a form of White male solidarity, a collective practice directed toward women, People of Color, and non-heterosexuals that maintains racism, sexism, and homophobia in the local, national, and global context.

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Notes

  1. The word “good” here refers to a job that pays above the minimum wage and provides at least the basic fringe benefits, such as health insurance and retirement (i.e., meets the financial needs of the worker).

  2. Benokraitis and Feagin (1995) claimed that homosexuals easily get good jobs but rarely keep them, especially when their sexual orientation becomes known.

  3. In Whitebread, route sales persons were off duty on Wednesdays and Sundays, with the option to work on their days off for additional pay. Most route sales persons began their shifts between midnight and 3 a.m. and usually ended their shifts around 3 P.m.. During this time, the sales person would be responsible for transporting goods to various stores on their route, checking in the product with the store receiver, and then stocking the product on the store shelves. All remaining merchandise after the shelves had been stocked would be placed in the merchandise holding area, usually located in the back of the stores. Because the sales person was responsible for ensuring that the store shelves remain full while the stores are open, often they would have to go back to the stores (usually around 5 P.m.) they delivered to earlier in the day and spend an additional 2 or 3 h restocking the shelves.

  4. The distribution centers at Whitebread served as the central warehouse for specific regions. Workers would pick up merchandise at these centers and then proceed to deliver throughout the day to various restaurants and stores, before returning to the center to restock and fill out their paperwork.

  5. We must also note here that in the case of Whitebread, any worker who works in an office environment was listed under the general management team. Most of the women on our list work in secretarial positions that have nothing to do with management in terms of having power over other workers. Thus, Whitebread was able to exaggerate their claims of women in management even though in reality there are far fewer women than men in supervisory positions.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Sociology, Loyola University-Chicago, Damen Hall #936, 6525 N. Sheridan Road, Chicago, Illinois, 60626, USA

    David G. Embrick

  2. Indiana University-Purdue University Fort Wayne, Fort Wayne, IN, 46805, USA

    Carol S. Walther

  3. Department of Teaching, Learning, and Culture, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas, USA

    Corrine M. Wickens

Authors
  1. David G. Embrick
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  2. Carol S. Walther
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  3. Corrine M. Wickens
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to David G. Embrick.

Appendix I: Interview Questions Dealing with Sexuality

Appendix I: Interview Questions Dealing with Sexuality

  1. 1.

    How do you feel about gays and lesbians who work in the vending industry and are open about their sexuality?

  2. 2.

    Excluding yourself, what do you think are the reactions of most supervisors when confronted by applicants looking to become a route salesperson who are also open about their sexuality, being gay or lesbian?

  3. 3.

    What do you think are the common reactions of workers in this company concerning co-workers who consider themselves to be gay or lesbian?

  4. 4.

    Should gays and lesbians remain in the closet, keep it secret, about their sexual preferences?

  5. 5.

    Should gays and lesbians who work in the vending industry remain in the closet, keep it secret, about their sexual preferences?

  6. 6.

    Does it make a difference if that person is a man or a woman?

  7. 7.

    Scenario: The sales manager chooses you as a trainer for a new worker, a male [female if the respondent is female] who is open about being gay. What is your reaction?

  8. 8.

    Does it make a difference if the person was a woman [man if the respondent is female] who was open about being a lesbian?

  9. 9.

    Do you think a person who is open about being gay or lesbian can be successful, either as a worker or in management, in the vending industry?

  10. 10.

    Does it make a difference if that person is a man or a woman?

  11. 11.

    Do you think it is ok for sexual orientation, for example—whether you are gay or lesbian, to be a consideration in vending industry jobs?

  12. 12.

    What about the military?

  13. 13.

    Would you like to add any additional comments concerning sexuality to this interview?

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Embrick, D.G., Walther, C.S. & Wickens, C.M. Working Class Masculinity: Keeping Gay Men and Lesbians out of the Workplace. Sex Roles 56, 757–766 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11199-007-9234-0

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