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Subject:Re: secretary's day From:"Hillary M. Russak" <hrussak -at- SLAC -dot- STANFORD -dot- EDU> Date:Wed, 22 Apr 1998 13:45:52 -0700
(thread snipped)
When I read the first post, I thought it seemed likely that the Secretary's
Day card was mostly a gender issue; another case of someone (man or woman)
mistaking a woman for a secretary. I think it's unlikely that a male tech.
writer would have gotten a Secretary's Day card. I didn't assume it was
done on purpose (and we weren't given information one way or the other
about the intent of the card), but it sounded familiar. As a woman, I've
seen this type of workplace bias for many years. It's getting better, but
VERY slowly.
The discussion that followed confirmed for me that many of the men on our
list didn't see the issue as gender-related, even though many of the women
did. I found this interesting and predictable. We have a long way to go
ladies and gentlemen, and it starts in our own "playground."
Secretaries day has become outdated and inappropriate. I don't "celebrate"
it anymore. The administrative assistants in my division know I appreciate
their contribution year-round.
-hil
---------------------------
Hillary M. Russak
Technical Writer
Stanford Linear Accelerator Center
(650) 926-3193
Pager (650)849-9483
hrussak -at- slac -dot- stanford -dot- edu
