I'd be interested to read the article. In my personal anecdotal experience, old school (male) safety 'officers' had interpersonal skills of virtually nil. I suspect this was the very reason they ended up being shoved into the job as they weren't wanted anywhere else. Their approach was to go round saying 'stop that'. With the recent professionalisation of H&S, there is now an increased recognition of the need for soft skills which women are traditionally assumed to have more of. For example, soft skills are represented in the skills to be demonstrated for IPD and job interviewers focus on soft skills. So a kind of feminisation goes along with professionalisation. On the other hand, I was recently criticised for a soft approach and was asked to be 'more right-wing'!

There's no need to be rude. As I took care to say, I was reporting my "personal, anecdotal experience" and not attempting to give a historical perspective.

I object to being addressed as "Madam" and I suggest that you read the words I wrote and not the words you imagine I wrote.

From the moment I saw the heading to this topic I knew it had got disaster written all over it :-)

Have they all gone? :)

As another female in the profession (and previously as a consultant ergonomist), have to agree with Kate as come across a couple of "dinosaurs" in my time both in H&S and on the shop floor - with some being downright patronising. Having said that, I've also had some really good banter with guys on the shop floor / fire service / nuclear industry who have commented on the fact that it was "easier to chat to a pretty lady rather than some "boring old git" [their words not mine I hasten to add before I get acused of anything!]. At my last interview {for the job I now hold}, one of the questions given to my two referees was how would I cope with confrontation. My boss at the time said that "if she can deal with 30 odd hairy firefighters in a training scenario and get them to do what she wanted, she'd have no problem whatsoever with their management teams!" [again, not my words!]. I do think that you have to have a thick skin whether male or female when battling the perception out there that we're all clipboarding wielding carriers of doom and I've worked hard to ensure our staff know I'm there for any question they might have (however stupid they might think the question is) and that, even if I don't know the answer, I will try and find out for them ASAP.

I think that the profession, like a lot of professions, has undergone quite a substantial change with regard to women in recent years. When I started in health and safety in an engineering/manufacturing environment 20 years ago I was very patronised by reps selling products such as machine guarding where they would come in and tell me where the guards went "by law" until I pointed out that actually we had to complete a risk assessment first and ascertain that for ourselves! On a notable occasion we called a company in to demonstrate electrostatic spraying and the sprayer/representative told me to go and get him a coffee!!!! He went home thirsty and without an order! As for the softer skills - I get a load of my "softer skills" stuff from my husband who studied 5 years of psychology towards his doctorate - I use his stuff primarily for behavioural safety and it normally makes for a fun and informative session. These days I think there are so many capable women in our profession that it is accepted as the norm rather than an exception and that is progress. Obviously there are still some dinosaurs around but thankfully, they are dying out and becoming extinct.

As an new engineering apprentice I was sent to the stores (run by 2 women) for some greased balls.

I knew it! As soon as you winkle women out of the kitchen/bedroon they get ideas way beyond their station!!!! As a man I think women are at least as good as men (in any job) but when it comes to dealing with people us chaps could learn a lot from these strange creatures ;-) Would I call our Kate, Hills or Nicola 'madam? Jeez no!

Knowing Zimmy you can take it as a compliment - you'd know soon enough if it wasn't one!!!

I wish I had half the skills' Hills' and you guys/girls have. All I got is a loud mouth. My respects to you Nicola

Is there not a case to argue or state "that I suspect this was the very reason they ended up being shoved into the job as they weren't wanted anywhere else" as per post #2. Jon

Can I point out that Judith Hackett is not male

Oh yes, ole' Sherlock can still recognise a sarcastic dinosaur

20-30 years ago this WAS the case in the vast majority of workplaces

John M wrote: Is there not a case to argue or state "that I suspect this was the very reason they ended up being shoved into the job as they weren't wanted anywhere else" as per post #2. I must be a glutton for punishment, I volunteered for my current position as safety engineer after 30 years as an aerospace tech. During my years "On Tools" I witnessed a couple of bad accidents that would have been completely avoidable if only we had the luxury of a dedicated safety team, I'm talking about the dark days when the Forces enjoyed Crown Immunity (No more, thank heavens) So when the opportunity to put the spanners away and head up a brand new safety team presented itself in 2007, I jumped at the chance and we have had measured success in year on year reductions in incidents and near misses.

This is not just about the Equity Act. I participated in a research project for the South African Mining Health and Safety Council on PPE for Women in Mining and the main focus was not whether women could do the jobs previously conceived for men, but the suitability of OHS conditions including PPE for women in a male-dominated industry; thus adding the a more practical dimension to gender in OHS. Sanyi

By coincidence earlier this week while sorting through old documents I came across a few copies of newsletters for HSE inspectors which I'd kept from my time with HSE. As the main purpose of such newsletters was to alert inspectors about new/updated legislation & standards and significant events and developments within HSE, they tended to be rather factual and unexciting to read. Thankfully, they also tended to include a few anonymised anecdotes from inspectors about their experiences. The following one, entitled "Is she or isn't she?" from 1982 might be of interest to followers of this thread: In the masculine world of industry in Northern England one gets used to people expressing surprise when the factory inspector is female. The usual comment is "Ee, we've never 'ad a woman before". Recently a woman inspector encountered an extreme example of this. After arriving at a factory she was escorted by the receptionist into the factory manager's office and announced as "The factory inspector". The following conversation took place: Manager: (in blank amazement ) You're a woman! Inspector: (surprised) Er, yes. Manager: But you can't be a factory inspector. Inspector: Well, I am. (Introduces herself) Manager: No, really, are you a proper inspector? Inspector: Oh yes, I'm the real thing. You can see my warrant if you wish. Manager: But you can't have women factory inspectors! Inspector: Of course you can. There are quite a lot of us about. There have been women factory inspectors since 1893. Manager: 1893? Well, you amaze me! (pauses to think about it) Tell me, er.....how do you....er.......manage? Inspector: (wondering what's coming next) Manage what? Manager: Well, inspecting engineering places like this. I mean women don't know anything about machinery, and they don't like getting dirty and that. The inspector was amazed to find such an attitude in a relatively young manager. She explained to him about graduate recruitment (that surprised him) and the theoretical and practical training of inspectors. The inspector then inspected the factory which comprised a dirty end where men used machinery to shape metal components and a clean end where women sewed fabric. She left, feeling that she'd done something to alter the manager's attitude towards women. However, three weeks later she received a letter from the manager, addressed to her by name. It began "Dear Sir".

Julie Are you aware of the HSE's publication: "Women of Courage: 100 Years of Lady Factory Inspectors 1893-1993". Available from Amazon.

Many thanks Charlie for your post; I do have this book, along with Lady Inspectors, Not Only The Dangerous Trades: Women's Work And Health In Britain 1880-1914 and a biography of May Tennant, accompanied with some historical archive documentation and academic research. They are such fascinating reads and provide an insightful account of the issues faced at the time. Many thanks for your recommendations Charlie, I am always interested to include additional literature. Kindest regards Julie