this post was submitted on 24 Oct 2024
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I often get the sense that I'm in the only one here doing manual labor but I'm sure there are others.

Identify yourselves.

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[–] ryan213@lemmy.ca 48 points 2 years ago (1 children)
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[–] Track_Shovel@slrpnk.net 24 points 2 years ago (2 children)

Soil scientist. I spent 10 years stomping through the bush and digging pits when I got there.

Now I sit behind a desk.

[–] RamblingPanda@lemmynsfw.com 3 points 2 years ago (2 children)

That's a good picture, great beard. And it's exactly how I imagined someone in your profession.

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[–] That_Devil_Girl@lemmy.ml 20 points 2 years ago (3 children)

Shipwright welder. I crawl all throughout the bowels of Navy and civilian ships with my gear in tow. I build new areas, cut out old areas, and perform repairs on hulls and pipes.

[–] ContrarianTrail@lemm.ee 10 points 2 years ago (2 children)

I love welding. One of my favourite things to do in my previous job. I'm highly skilled at oxy-acetylene welding steel pipes in really tight and difficult places but my favourite one was TiG welding stainless steel with automatic and ventilated mask while listening to podcasts. Really meditative just being in your own bubble staring at the bright spot of molten metal.

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[–] Anticorp@lemmy.world 3 points 2 years ago

Do you get covered from head to toe with grease and grime? Does it pay well? I have a friend who's about ready to wrap up his underwater welding classes, and supposedly he'll make some big bucks after he graduates.

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[–] ContrarianTrail@lemm.ee 18 points 2 years ago (2 children)

I'll go first.

Self-employed general contractor / plumber

[–] ryan213@lemmy.ca 7 points 2 years ago (1 children)

Do you happen to be in the Toronto area?? I'm looking for a plumber. Lol

[–] ContrarianTrail@lemm.ee 8 points 2 years ago

Sorry, I'm across the Atlantic

[–] Crazyslinkz@lemmy.world 5 points 2 years ago (1 children)

Thank you for your service

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[–] leftzero@lemmynsfw.com 16 points 2 years ago

My boss just had me change two coworkers' passwords so they wouldn't be able to log back in.

I keep washing and washing, but the blood won't come off.

[–] rc__buggy@sh.itjust.works 14 points 2 years ago (1 children)

Flooring and Flooring Accesories

[–] BlueLineBae@midwest.social 7 points 2 years ago

Ah, the ol' Hank Hill of flooring.

[–] Swerker@feddit.nu 13 points 2 years ago (1 children)
[–] clay_pidgin@sh.itjust.works 4 points 2 years ago

Awesome. What do you farm?

[–] theatomictruth@lemmy.world 12 points 2 years ago

Tallship sailor/rigger

[–] Agrivar@lemmy.world 10 points 2 years ago (1 children)

I used to be a programmer, but I got sick of the whole corporate scene. Now I build and maintain houses - and my hands are dirty a good amount of the time!

[–] pineapplelover@lemm.ee 3 points 2 years ago (1 children)

Damn that's a crazy transition. How do you like it?

[–] Agrivar@lemmy.world 4 points 2 years ago

Well, it's been about twenty years and I haven't gone back to the cubicle farm!

[–] Anticorp@lemmy.world 10 points 2 years ago* (last edited 2 years ago) (1 children)

I don't have a dirty job anymore, but the dirtiest job I've had by far was industrial carpenter. I'd go to work with clean jeans and a clean white shirt, and every day I'd come home with jeans that were black from the knees up, and a shirt that was black from the chest down.

I had to wear white shirts because nothing else would come clean. Only white with a lot of bleach would give any appearance of being laundered after a day at work on that job.

I still have a T-shirt from that job, some-odd 20 years later, and it has Hilti C100 industrial epoxy stains all over it, just as hard as the day the shirt was stained. That's my "shit's about to get real" work around the house shirt.

[–] rowinxavier@lemmy.world 10 points 2 years ago

I work in disability support so I may use various creams while massaging, I get messy while helping people with washing and toileting, and I feed people which can get messy. I also help people with their yards, cleaning their house, washing their pets, whatever they need.

[–] RamblingPanda@lemmynsfw.com 10 points 2 years ago (1 children)

Software engineer. Sometimes I spill coffee, sometimes it's chocolate or chips crumbs.

It's honest, hard work, but someone has to do it.

[–] TheBakedPotato@sh.itjust.works 4 points 2 years ago

As a software dev, I have spilt coffee on myself a number of times. People just don't understand what a hard working environment it is. 😞

[–] RicoBerto@lemmy.blahaj.zone 9 points 2 years ago (1 children)

I load and run two large fiber lasers cutting sheets of metal up to 1 1/4 inch thick.

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[–] Cryophilia@lemmy.world 9 points 2 years ago

Facility maintenance. We grease motors, change belts, tighten bolts. One of the fuel pumps on our generator has a leak, so that's a fun bit of dirty hands.

My approach to maintenance also involves a lot of cleaning, because I believe clean equipment runs better over time. So cleaning off fan blades, insides of electrical cabinets, sumps, etc. We also fix sinks and toilets.

[–] BluescreenOfDeath@lemmy.world 8 points 2 years ago

I work for an ISP in the southeast USA as a field technician and it's dirty work sometimes. Fixing rodent damage to fiber connection boxes for businesses, placing temporary cables when underground lines get cut, working in dusty equipment closets, etc.

It's not bad or hard work most days.

[–] timduncant@lemmy.world 8 points 2 years ago

Diesel mechanic, the black never washes off!!

[–] nick@midwest.social 7 points 2 years ago (1 children)

I work in tech now, so I’m a lazy schlub. However, I’m also a college dropout out (English major) who had a ton of actual jobs in the past. Warehouse loading delivery trucks, worked in a cabinet shop, food service, etc. i

I think college grads who go into tech should have to work a normal job for at least a year before getting their tech job and making six figures right out of college.

Otherwise you end up with these entitled shitbags who complain that their company provided duck confit at lunch doesn’t have crispy enough skin (an actual thing that actually happened when i was at a big FANG company. Fucking unbelievable)

So even though I’m a techbro shitlord, i have respect for the people who work jobs.

[–] sockman@sh.itjust.works 7 points 2 years ago

Window manufacturing Our 2-part industrial sealing silicone gets everywhere; hands, clothes, hair, whatever. Never comes out of clothes and you gotta scrub hard to get it off skin.

[–] Bad_Engineering@fedia.io 7 points 2 years ago

I'm a mechanical engineer for a small manufacturing plant and I run their maintenance department. Its more hands on than most engineering jobs though.

[–] spankmonkey@lemmy.world 6 points 2 years ago (1 children)
[–] nondescripthandle@lemmy.dbzer0.com 3 points 2 years ago (2 children)
[–] nick@midwest.social 3 points 2 years ago (1 children)
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[–] LovableSidekick@lemmy.world 6 points 2 years ago

Proctologists need not reply.

[–] spittingimage@lemmy.world 6 points 2 years ago

I unload pallets of computer gear. That's not the main part of my job, but it's something that happens from time to time.

[–] Chef_Boyardee@lemm.ee 5 points 2 years ago

Caretaker for my father. Lots of poop.

Also still paying my dues to the electrical union. That was a dirty AF job. Miss it a bunch, tho.

[–] over_clox@lemmy.world 5 points 2 years ago

I do occasional vehicle maintenance, like replacing brakes, starters, alternators, water pumps, radiators, etc.

Last one I did the other week was replace an old rotted leaky fuel line. Fun fun..

[–] Wolf314159@startrek.website 5 points 2 years ago* (last edited 2 years ago)

I generally wash they with warm water and soap after I'm done or taking a break. I usually take one of those little dish soap bottles from the hotel when I travel to keep in the truck, cuts right through the grease and grime pretty well even if all you have is a jug of water on hand.

[–] JustRalph@lemmy.world 4 points 2 years ago

Masterbate.

[–] RedAggroBest@lemmy.world 4 points 2 years ago

It's not really "dirty" in the same sense but I'm a massage therapist. Don't think it gets more literally hands-on as far as a job goes lol. I primarily do deep tissue work, I REALLY enjoy injury-focused work, so it can be a bit tiring but it's generally pretty satisfying.

[–] Sequentialsilence@lemmy.world 3 points 2 years ago

I setup and run events. Nothing particularly messy, but very sweaty. On setup days I can do a half marathon just by moving equipment to where it needs to go.

[–] cheers_queers@lemm.ee 3 points 2 years ago

elementary school custodian. i love my schedule and the hours of alone time i get to listen to books and podcasts! a living wage and paid holidays are nice too.

[–] weeeeum@lemmy.world 3 points 2 years ago

Woodworker. Hands are always dirty after sharpening blades.

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