Staff outing - only ladies invited

Kynthia

Brynsam wrote: »

Massive overreaction to something which really isn't that important. First world 'problem'...

Hardly a "massive" overreaction to send one polite email.

Fair enough if it was staff themselves organising a ladies night out, but it was an official staff event organised by management, and communicated to all staff. Men were instructed to organise something for themselves further confirming that this was a work-led outing where the split was based on gender, and men were being treated unequally as management weren't organising their event it wouldn't be acceptable to do this by race or sexual preference so it isn't right to do it on gender.

The fact that some men wouldn't be bothered doesn't mean it's not wrong.

Comms69

Funnily enough the only time I’ve witnessed sexism in the workplace was a couple of similar situations.

Still don’t understand why ‘minorities’ are automatically assumed to be victims of oppression

Potbellypig

Right or wrong, it's checkmate from the manager with the move to cancel the event because you complained though. It's made the OP look like a right numpty to his work colleagues.

Sometimes in life we just say nothing and it works out better. This was probably one of those occasions.

F_Bear

i'd print all the emails off and keep them in a safe place.



a big enough civil service department shld have an equlaites manager. i'd take the paper copies to them and get them to have a word with her. dont show weakness or she'll come after you.


then be polite as pie to her. keep your friends close and your enemies closer.


shes completely wrong. to much of a bigit to see it.

dancing_star

OP might not be the only one who complained.

pinkshoes

A women only night out is daft.

I worked in engineering, and still get invited on their nights out, albeit I am the only female that goes. Their whatsapp group message always starts with "beer night lads?" but that includes me

Saying that, I teach a subject where our girls do far worse than boys, so I run a girls only club at lunch for those that struggle. I aim tontarget specific kids who refuse to ask for help in class. I do allow boys to come though if they ask why it is girls only and really want to come!

But back to the point - if there is no specific reason why it needs to be ladies only (e.g. a night discussing periods and sanitary protection) then it should be open for all.

Dean000000

Op is spot on though.... that email is basically an invite for a night out - which excludes half the office.

It’s arbitrary and who’s to say what is an acceptable spilt?

Night out - Europeans only

Night out - those with names starting with a - m

Night out - only for those born south of the Watford gap

Night out - those that went grammar school only

Etc etc.

ArcticRoll

pinkshoes wrote: »

A women only night out is daft.

I worked in engineering, and still get invited on their nights out, albeit I am the only female that goes. Their whatsapp group message always starts with "beer night lads?" but that includes me

Saying that, I teach a subject where our girls do far worse than boys, so I run a girls only club at lunch for those that struggle. I aim tontarget specific kids who refuse to ask for help in class. I do allow boys to come though if they ask why it is girls only and really want to come!

But back to the point - if there is no specific reason why it needs to be ladies only (e.g. a night discussing periods and sanitary protection) then it should be open for all.

Hi. As a boy that would be one of those who suffered from shyness as a child, if I was struggling with a subject I'd likely refuse to put my hand up and ask for help in class and I'd definitely wouldn't be inclined to argue with my teacher that I should be allowed extra support.

Please don't take this the wrong way, but why is the class not for children who struggle and refuse to ask for help rather than for girls who struggle and refuse to ask to help and put a barrier in front of the boys accessing additional support?

Of course I don't know much about the situation other than what you've said but I'd be fairly annoyed if I was a parent and my child was struggling with a subject but who had to challenge the teacher to receive additional support that was on offer to other children, just because he was a boy.

I get the idea behind targeting children that struggle but put yourself in the shoes of a child who is struggling, who finds if hard to ask for help maybe because of anxiety or shyness that can affect children of that age. You find out that other children are being offered additional support but you're not because you have a penis and you'll never get that help unless, as a child who finds it hard to ask for help because of shyness or anxiety, you somehow pluck up the courage to confront your teacher to demand extra support, despite already being a child who doesn't even feel comfortable enough to ask for help during class.

Also by calling it a 'Girls only club', aren't you encouraging boys to stigmatise asking for/receiving additional help as being something 'girly'. Given that boys/men in general struggle to ask for help in so many other areas of life as an adult, instilling in them in children that additional support, help and guidence is something 'for the girls', even in this small seemingly benign and no doubt well-intentioned way, possibly plant the seeds for something more dangerous.

Marvel1

pinkshoes wrote: »

A women only night out is daft.

I worked in engineering, and still get invited on their nights out, albeit I am the only female that goes. Their whatsapp group message always starts with "beer night lads?" but that includes me

Saying that, I teach a subject where our girls do far worse than boys, so I run a girls only club at lunch for those that struggle. I aim tontarget specific kids who refuse to ask for help in class. I do allow boys to come though if they ask why it is girls only and really want to come!

But back to the point - if there is no specific reason why it needs to be ladies only (e.g. a night discussing periods and sanitary protection) then it should be open for all.

They shouldn't have to ask, as you stated it should be open to all form the start.

ArcticRoll

Marvel1 wrote: »

They shouldn't have to ask, as you stated it should be open to all form the start.

I agree, if I was a boy who struggled in a certain subject and was told there are 'Girls only clubs' at lunch time for additional help I'd feel kind of rejected and probably more inclined to give up on a subject rather than be spurred on to challenge for additional help that I'm seeing other people in my class being offered routinely.

What's more is that it seems to be quite tone-deaf to the social realities of any playground I've ever been a part of to imagine that there'll be boys queuing up to demand to go to something called the 'Girls Only Club'.

With respect to the poster if I was a parent of a child in that class I'd be pretty angry to discover that my son was being asked to have to argue to access to support in a subject he struggled him just because he wasn't a girl. I'd want to know why the teacher was making him justify why he wanted additional support when other children were being offered it.