Nov 21st 2016 8:11am
What your job says about you, according to Google – 27% of us are overpaid, 14% are rude and 6% are hot
A new data study has revealed precisely what people think of us, based on what we do for a living.
Based on Google autocomplete suggestions for 131 professions*, the results reveal a somewhat depressing – and sometimes funny – snapshot of how we perceive one another. The study, launched by Stormline to challenge negative job stereotyping, revealed:
The researchers, working on behalf of workwear brand Stormline, painstakingly recorded the top autocomplete results for queries about jobs that started with “why are…” and “why do…”.
Most assumptions were about money
Expensive | Paid so much | Earn so much | Rich |
Anaesthetists | Actors | Bankers | Bankers |
Builders | Accountants | Recruitment consultants | Property developers |
Chiropractors | Anaesthetists | Refuse collectors | Youtubers |
designers | Train drivers | Train drivers | |
DJs | Tube drivers | Tube drivers | |
Electricians | Dental hygienists | Accountants | |
Hair stylists | Dentists | Anaesthetists | |
Orthodontists | Developers | ||
Plasterers | DJs | ||
Plumbers | MPs | ||
Psychiatrists | Orthodontists | ||
Surveyors | |||
Therapists | |||
Vets |
The most common personality stereotypes were broadly negative.
Rude | Arrogant | Annoying |
Academics | Developers | Bloggers |
Bartenders | Estate agents | Journalists |
Baristas | Electricians | Recruitment consultants |
Bouncers | Lecturers | Salespeople |
Bus drivers | Paramedics | Students |
Chefs | Physicists | Youtubers |
Debt collectors | Psychiatrists | |
Dental hygienists | Surgeons | |
Dentists | Academics | |
Hairdressers | Bankers | |
Judges | ||
Letting agents | ||
Mechanics | ||
Nurses | ||
Receptionists | ||
Surgeons | ||
Tattoo artists |
Some were less negative
Hot | Left wing/liberal |
Dental hygienists | Musicians |
Bartenders | Academics |
Baristas | Journalists |
Fire fighters | Professors |
Flight attendants | |
Musicians | |
Soldiers | |
Tattoo artists |
Some appeared to show a degree of concern
Mean | Weird | Crazy | Grumpy | Hated | Depressed |
Chefs | Engineers | Hair stylists | Bus drivers | Social workers | Musicians |
Landlords | Fashion designers | Office workers | Developers | Bankers | Writers |
Managers | Musicians | Therapists | |||
Orthodontists | Writers |
Overpaid
Dentists, designers, web developers, MPs, train drivers, DJs and even dental hygienists – for whom the average salary is just under £28,000**, just slightly over the UK’s average salary of £26,500*** – are perceived as overpaid or expensive, according to the data.
Important
36 of the professions were of questionable importance.
Enough people have historically Googled ‘Why are *profession*’ for Google to offer it as an autocomplete suggestion. This applies to accountants, anaesthetists, baristas, beekeepers, bloggers, engineers, paralegals, project managers, researchers teachers and teaching assistants.
Rude and arrogant
18 of the jobs were stereotyped as rude and 10 were deemed to be arrogant – and it isn’t just those in prestigious roles – like bankers, academics and scientists – that we consider arrogant. Google suggested ‘arrogant’ for electricians, developers and even paramedics when typing in ‘Why are…’
Hot
Attractiveness, or more specifically being ‘hot’ was the only positive stereotype that appeared frequently. Good news for tattoo artists, musicians, firefighters, dental hygienists, bartenders and soldiers – all of whom are considered hot by Google.
Regan McMillan, Director of Stormline, who supply unisex wet weather gear to a range of industries, including engineering, forestry and fishing, explained the inspiration for the study:
"We did this research to see if perceptions of jobs could be making them unattractive to otherwise ideal candidates.
“The industries we work with all suffer from stereotyping and those stereotypes can put talented people off pursuing great careers in industries that need them.
“According to this study, engineers are boring and weird, farmers are poor and people in forestry have beards and wear check shirts.”
“Some of the stereotypes were funny, but if people truly think you need to be female to be a receptionist, or that lumberjacks really all have beards, there’s clearly an issue with inaccurate stereotyping and some of it is gender-driven.
“Previous research we’ve conducted has shown that 1 in 5 women would expect to be patronised if they worked in a male-dominated industry like engineering, where women represent just 7% of the workforce. This is just one of a number of invisible barriers to entry.
“With this research, we wanted to show just how ridiculous some of these stereotypes are.”
Cast Study – Genevieve Kurilec, commercial fishing captain
Genevieve Kurilec is a commercial fishing captain, she believes the more people in stereotype-busting roles, the better:
“In my experience women tend to be more safety conscious and detail oriented, which makes us an excellent asset to any crew working in a dangerous occupation.
“If you do your job, put in your time and take care of your vessel you will earn the respect of your fellow fishermen, gender notwithstanding.”