Tulloch PriestCo-founder, Gas Engineer Software · Co-founder of Gas Engineer Software

The Double Standard In The Trades Industry

6 Nov 2025 · 0 min

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In this excerpt from the YouTube video "The Double Standard In The Trades Industry," speakers discuss a form of reverse sexism that female technicians experience in the trades. They cite a specific example involving Hollis Heating Services where customers book a service expecting a woman to arrive. When a male technician, Daniel, shows up, the customer expresses disappointment, prompting the technician to explain that his partner is the female worker. The conversation reveals that the company now asks callers, "Are you okay with a male engineer?"—a question that feels odd because customers never have to ask the reverse. The speakers highlight the asymmetry in expectations: women are assumed to be the default service provider, while men must be explicitly approved, exposing a gender bias in the industry.

He's been exposed to what I term reverse sexism. People have booked Hollis Heating Services and Daniel turns up and they go, "Oh, we were expecting a girl to turn up or a woman to turn up." And he's like, "Oh no, that's my partner." But I've had to learn to say on the phone when people book in a service, "Are you okay with a male engineer?" Which is something which is so odd. They never have to ask that question because they just assume a man is turning up.
'Cause if you think about that question the other way around. Yeah. If you said there's a female coming out.
Is that okay? Okay, is that okay?
It would be, It wouldn't go down very well. It wouldn't.