Female electrician dismissed from job after sexist client complaint

A female electrician has spoken out about how she wasn't taken seriously in her job role and was dismissed by a customer due to her gender.

"You guys think it's so easy being a female in a male-dominated industry, you think that we get all the perks and things are handed to us and life is easy," Lexi began in the viral video from last year, before sharing her experience.

The electrician turned up to a female customer's home ready to do a "standard job" of changing a panel that had rusted out after her basement was flooded and added panel changes is one of her "specialties."

But upon arrival, the woman asked Lexi: "Is someone else coming?" to which she replied saying it was just her and the customer then added "It's just you?" to which the electrician confirmed it would be "just" herself.

Bizarrely, the customer then says "No offense but is there someone else that can do it?" Lexi's face looked stunned while recalling the conversation.

When asked by Lexi to clarify what she meant, the woman then explained how "the gentleman who came out to do the estimate" said the job was "involved" and "very complicated."

While Lexi agreed the job is "complicated" she assured the customer that she does this kind of work "on a daily basis" and is "totally standard" for her as she has done them a million times.

However, this still didn't satisfy the woman said she wanted to give Lexi's office a call as she said: "I just don't feel comfortable."

Lexi then told the customer that her brother is also an electrician that does installments like this but noted he is a 19-year-old apprentice.

"Great, when is he available?" the customer then asked, as an unimpressed Lexi folded her arms while retelling the story.

"I get this all of the time - especially from older women," the electrician said, and while she understands that women didn't really have jobs like hers back in the day, she added "It's 2023."

"I literally do this for a living."

Since sharing her story on TikTok, it has received over a million views and 173,000 likes, with people sharing their thoughts in the comments with many praising Lexi in her role and criticising the customer's actions.

One person said: "Should’ve pulled out the uno reverse card like 'is there a man in charge of the house I can talk to?'"

"The utter relief I would feel if you showed up and I didn't have to invite a strange man into my house?? we need more tradeswomen like you," another person wrote.

A third added: "Tell your brother to get 'stuck' during the job and have him 'call an expert to help him.' Then show up and be like 'hi, I'm the expert!'"

"I'm the only female stage technician where I work and often clients will not reply to me when I talk to them and talk to my male colleague next to me," a fourth person commented.

Someone else replied: "I’d be stoked if you showed up at my house. We need more women in the trades!!"

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