Is Engineering A White, Grey Or Blue Collar Profession?

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While engineering is a very technical career with high value and knowledge, it is usually confused with blue-collar jobs, while white-collar jobs rarely apply to most engineering jobs. So what collar is engineering?

In general, engineers are either white or grey-collar. Officially, engineers are white collar because they get paid in salary and have higher education. However, depending on the engineering major. Most engineering jobs are considered grey-collar because engineers perform some physical duties. In other words, engineers are white-collar workers who get their hands dirty from time to time. 

The colour of the collar is naming that refers to the work nature of the workers.

White-collar workers usually work in offices and are valued for their thinking and knowledge more than their physical labour.

While blue-collar are people who perform physically demanding work and used to wear dark blue clothes in the 1900s, which are less prone to dirt hence the blue-collar naming.

Grey collar refers to people who have a mix of office and site physical labour, yet unlike blue collars, they are paid in salary and are entitled to bonuses and salary raises. Generally, engineers fall into that grey category, yet despite that, all engineering jobs are sometimes considered white-collar.

The main difference between grey and blue collar is that engineers are salary paid, have high education and perform all white collar duties. Yet, engineers perform some manual work because of the high technicality of the engineering work.

Now that we have some understanding of the different collars, we can explore each one in detail:

Which Engineers Are Considered White Collars? 

White-collar engineers work in offices and do not perform any physical duties. These are engineers who are paid for their intellect and knowledge mainly.

Software engineers are a good example of white-collar and design engineers, such as structural engineers.

Because engineering is a very technical job, it is hard to determine whether an engineer is white or grey-collar. Yet, engineers who work in an office environment are usually not required to use their hands to operate a machine or tools or do anything other than using their computers. It is considered a white-collar job.

Which Engineers Are Considered Grey Collars?

Grey-collar engineers are engineers who have a mix of site and office work and work with white and blue-collar workers and perform technical duties requiring using hands with some lite physical labour.

Grey collar engineers can be civil, mechanical, electrical or chemical engineers. Within those engineering majors, there can be white-collar and grey-collar engineers.

Usually, younger engineers who work on job sites such as Mechanical, Civil, Electrical and Chemical engineers are grey-collar engineers. Which means they work with tools and work with blue-collar workers. 

While more senior engineers with more experience have transitioned from grey-collar to white-collar engineers, they are more engaged in decision-making and complicated engineering design and analysis than technical manual work. Most likely, they make more executive decisions for younger grey-collar engineers.

White-Collar Engineers Vs Grey Collar Engineers 

Both white and grey-collar engineers are paid in salary and are entitled to salary bonuses and raises. In other words, there is no difference in pay; the colour of the collar mainly refers to the nature of the work engineers perform. Engineers who work only in offices are white collar, while engineers who do a mix of office, site and lab with some manual work are grey collar.

Are There Blue-Collar Engineers? 

Engineers are not blue-collar workers. Engineers are salary paid and not hourly paid, and they do not do any heavy manual work or low-skilled work. Engineers possess high education and knowledge and are referred to as grey-collar workers because they do some physical work.

Technicians are a good example of blue-collar workers who are not engineers but work with engineers.

What Does It Mean To Be A Grey-Collar Engineer? 

To be a grey-collar engineer means you have to be okay with getting your hands dirty. Grey-collar engineers possess the technical know-how and work with blue-collar workers by giving them instructions to build or manufacture something. They do not carry out the physical work themselves, but because they are on-site, they can do some lite physical work.

Mechanical engineers do the most physical work, followed by industrial, mechanical, biomedical, civil and electrical.

Examples of Grey Collar Engineers

Project and field engineers are specialised engineering fields in Mechanical, chemical, civil and electrical engineering. Those types of engineers are engaged in the project execution, making them very remote. Their work environment is a mix of office and site life, making them grey-collar engineers. They work with blue-collar workers, sometimes leading to some lite manual work.

HVAC Engineers are engineers in charge of installing and manufacturing Heating, ventilation and air conditioning units and perform manual and technician work but are still engineers.

Industrial engineers are also a good example of grey-collar engineers who works with blue-collar workers and can engage in technical manual work.

Are Grey Collars Inferior to White Collars job? 

While there are differences in the work nature, both grey-collar and white-collar workers have similar benefits. Grey-collar jobs pay as well and sometimes more than white-collar jobs. 

Engineering jobs are usually grey-collar jobs. On average, engineers are well paid compared to other jobs. Still, because of the nature of the work, engineers have to perform some physical work, but that does not make them inferior it actually makes them superior in some situations.

Are Grey-Collar Jobs Better Than Blue-Collar Jobs? 

Blue-collar workers refer to jobs with fewer benefits in terms of work conditions, but that does not make them inferior to white-collar and grey-collar workers. Blue collar workers are paid by the hour while white and grey collar are paid in salary. Because blue-collar can work overtime, they can sometimes make more money than white or grey-collar workers.