‘Boy and girl jobs’… Why Ms May’s sloppy comment does untold damage

'Boy and girl jobs'.

Let's all take a moment for that to sink in, a statement uttered by the Prime Minister of Britain, Theresa May, during an appearance alongside her husband Philip John May on The One Show this week. The below clip shows Theresa and Philip laughing like having different household jobs for different genders is a hilarious joke, but the reality is this is part of a bigger issue and making light of it only furthers the problem. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bGMJFzy1GfU Her words spread like wildfire on social media with Twitter users livid at the fact that a woman in such a powerful position could make such a harmful comment.

Did Theresa May *really* refer to 'boy jobs' and 'girl jobs' on the One show???

— Tara Bradberry (@tarabradberry) May 11, 2017

Yo, @theresa_may I'm in a household of two woman, how do we split the girl jobs and boy jobs? Also, welcome to 2017.

— Helen (@hkh_hkh_hkh) May 10, 2017

Hey @theresa_may it's 2017. All jobs are 'girl jobs'. All jobs are 'boy jobs'. Your sex does not determine your career prospects.

— Catriona (@Catriona_Rae) May 10, 2017

The single most infuriating thing is the fact that although Ms May's comment has some merit, she treated the idea of 'boy and girl jobs' as if it was something trivial. Think about it, is that how we want our children to grow up, with the idea that boys and girls are constrained to specific jobs? Your daughter might harbour notions of becoming an astronaut and perhaps, your little boy loves to dance. They should be free to pursue their chosen career without restrictions owing to the airs and graces of some lofty politician. Ms May might have meant this purely for jobs within the home but the connotations of such a statement suggest that there are specific genders for specific jobs. It's 2017 and women are fighting every day to gain equality with their male counterparts, in the workplace, at home, at university and a throwaway statement like this does untold damage, particularly when it comes from the most powerful women in Britain. The 60-year-old is renowned for her icy demeanour so in all likelihood, this was an attempt to appear more approachable, sitting on the couch with her husband talking about household chores but it backfired spectacularly. I'm not suggesting there isn't a basis for her opinion, that's the crux of the matter and the main point of this comment. She had such a huge platform to address a very relevant issue and instead, she resorted to the age-old idea that men should do certain jobs and woman others. Dads cut the grass while Mums make dinner, men take out the bins and women clean the whole house. Fair swap? Hell no. Again, this is NOT the ideals we want the children of today to grow up with. Housework is the responsibility of every individual who lives in the home and as parents, you have the chance to remodel those worn-out stereotypes. Seriously, this is 2017 and in reality, the Prime Minister and her husband probably have a team of people catering to their every whim and the idea of either of them actually taking out the bins at Downing Street is laughable. Figures from the UK's National Statistics Office collated last year show that women do almost 40 percent more housework than men. Further, after concentrating on FIFTY years of data, two Oxford academics found that women do a whopping 74 minutes of housework more a day in comparison to men. It's not all doom and gloom. The hunger for change is there, evident by the outraged reaction to Theresa May's dismissive treatment of this particular gender issue, which some have described as yet another example of everyday sexism. Women are no longer content to conform to the stereotype that's been in place for so long, of the silent figure who allows her partner to dominate the relationship, and men are now waking up to the fact that they too need to contribute to mundane household tasks. It's a long road ahead but the fight for true equality involves so much more than this particular debate. As women, we have to contend with a gender pay gap, and sexism everywhere from the workplace to the gym, so we will continue to fight the good fight and attempt to dismiss the exasperating concept of separate 'boy and girl' jobs. Hopefully, this means girls will grow up knowing it's not just their duty to clean up after men and boys won't just presume that their mess will be taken care of by someone else. This isn't a pipeline dream, this is a scenario in our grasp...so long as we keep dismissive comments like 'boy and girl' comments at bay.