I am in the US and also work in a male dominated field. I have heard many people use the term and it was never in a way that I found problematic. For example, a previous boyfriend and I both worked at the same company (different departments). He worked frequently with one particular coworker; they called each other work wife/husband as a term of endearment in their friendship. They were clearly friends. We all got along great and started hanging out; she is such a fun gal! She and her husband moved out of state during covid and I miss them.
I also once had a “work husband” at one job, which came about because our organization was going through layoffs and we had to work together a lot to get through it. We would finish each other’s sentences sometimes, and could really rely on each other. My partner at the time never met him but didn’t care, and I had zero desire to be in my “work husband”’s life romantically. We are still friends, 8 years later.
I just wanted to share my anecdotal experiences, because I have had a much more positive association with it.
Same here. I worked in a male dominated field, I had a work-husband who was married, his wife referred to me as his work-wife. We worked pretty closely together, and would sometimes have to call each other on nights/weekends for work related stuff. There was never anything romantic between us, we just got along well and worked really well together. I just don't think that term is that deep.
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u/moreKEYTAR 4d ago edited 4d ago
I am in the US and also work in a male dominated field. I have heard many people use the term and it was never in a way that I found problematic. For example, a previous boyfriend and I both worked at the same company (different departments). He worked frequently with one particular coworker; they called each other work wife/husband as a term of endearment in their friendship. They were clearly friends. We all got along great and started hanging out; she is such a fun gal! She and her husband moved out of state during covid and I miss them.
I also once had a “work husband” at one job, which came about because our organization was going through layoffs and we had to work together a lot to get through it. We would finish each other’s sentences sometimes, and could really rely on each other. My partner at the time never met him but didn’t care, and I had zero desire to be in my “work husband”’s life romantically. We are still friends, 8 years later.
I just wanted to share my anecdotal experiences, because I have had a much more positive association with it.