Men of Steel?: The Masculinity of Metal Industry Workers in Finland after World War II

This article examines the masculinity of metal workers in the post-WWII era of reparation and radical societal change in Finland. Young men from agrarian communities took on employment in metal industry jobs in droves after WWII. In this paper, metal workers’ masculinity is explored in three areas: (a) the transitional period when young men took their first steps in the shoes of metal workers; (b) defining the personal territory of work; and (c) the men’s physical capacity to bear their strenuous work. The sources we draw on are the metal workers’ work-life stories and workplace narratives in which they write about their personal experiences of work and their attitude about the trade. According to our analyses, metal workers’ culture was a double-edged sword. Male workers respected the skills, strength, and autonomy of their trade, but the work in itself and the habits and informal norms of the masculine industrial culture were often harmful to their health. Hence, although the masculinity of the post-war industrial era helped these men to overcome daily difficulties and to find collective strength when needed, masculinity was also connected to risk-taking, and even with illnesses and premature death.