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"Structural iron and steel workers have parents who are structural iron and steel workers at a rate 155 times the rest of the population. This is higher than mo

"Structural iron and steel workers have parents who are structural iron and steel workers at a rate 155 times the rest of the population. This is higher than most of the jobs on our list." One thing I've noticed about steel workers, is that if you talk to them about their work, they'll start talking to you in an entirely different language, with all of the slang. As far as I can tell, you either know the slang from some sort of family connection or you don't. I think this generational reproduction is perhaps intentional.

danblick 9y ago
I think this happens in every profession. Restaurants have their own DSLs, so do hospitals; many software jobs have their own domain language, especially once you get start talking about actual systems/implementations.
babaganoosh89 9y ago
Same with “Ship and boat captains and operators” at 433x, and real estate appraisers / accessors at 118x. Lots of esoteric knowledge in commercial boating + local real estate.
zxcmx 9y ago
Occupational heritability will also be boosted by the "company town" effect. I feel that might be a confounding factor in their analysis for many working class occupations. If you are raised in a town with a big steel plant or textile mill and you don't leave, you're likely to inherit a parent's job by default...
- Blahah 9y ago
  I was thinking the same thing - although it's not really confounding as the results are still true. It's likely an explanatory factor though.
  - jawns 9y ago
    It's confounding in the sense that if a child has the same job as their parent, we assume that parental influence may have had something to do with it. Which it probably does, in a lot of occupations. But when the "company town" effect occurs, it's not necessarily because of parental influence. It's merely a lack of other options.
- arethuza 9y ago
  I grew up in a fishing village - I've got something like 15 generations of ancestors who worked (and quite often died) working at sea. I'm very glad to have a job inside mostly sitting at a desk.

danblick 9y ago

I think this happens in every profession. Restaurants have their own DSLs, so do hospitals; many software jobs have their own domain language, especially once you get start talking about actual systems/implementations.

babaganoosh89 9y ago

Same with “Ship and boat captains and operators” at 433x, and real estate appraisers / accessors at 118x. Lots of esoteric knowledge in commercial boating + local real estate.

zxcmx 9y ago

Occupational heritability will also be boosted by the "company town" effect. I feel that might be a confounding factor in their analysis for many working class occupations. If you are raised in a town with a big steel plant or textile mill and you don't leave, you're likely to inherit a parent's job by default...

Blahah 9y ago
I was thinking the same thing - although it's not really confounding as the results are still true. It's likely an explanatory factor though.
- jawns 9y ago
  It's confounding in the sense that if a child has the same job as their parent, we assume that parental influence may have had something to do with it. Which it probably does, in a lot of occupations. But when the "company town" effect occurs, it's not necessarily because of parental influence. It's merely a lack of other options.
arethuza 9y ago
I grew up in a fishing village - I've got something like 15 generations of ancestors who worked (and quite often died) working at sea. I'm very glad to have a job inside mostly sitting at a desk.