Masculinity and Class in the Context of Dirty Work

Through an ethnographic study of ‘dirty work' (refuse collection and street cleaning), this articleexplores how masculinity and class intersect - how, in a mutually constitutive sense, theyproduce attitudes and practices, strengths and vulnerabilities, which are shaped by shiftingrelations of privilege and power. We find resistance to class subordination through adherence totraditional forms of masculinity and through esteem-enhancing social comparison (e.g., withwomen; with migrant workers). Men also mobilized powerful nostalgic themes around the lossof traditional jobs as well as trade union power. We argue that displays of masculine resiliencein the face of devaluation are less indicative of a culture of masculine dominance but more anexpression of vulnerability and social dislocation, serving both as a source of resistance whilstsimultaneously reinforcing anchors of social disadvantage that characterize forms of dirty work.We suggest that combining social comparison with intersectionality can potentially highlighthow categories of difference are strategically deployed in response to varied and unequallyvalued social positionalities.