Military removes ‘man’ from 19 job titles in a step towards gender-neutrality
Even age-old names like 'seaman' could be scrapped
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.The military is scrapping the word “man” from 19 job titles to help foster a more gender-neutral work environment.
Top service leaders are pushing to keep the word “man” in some of the most iconic occupations, however, according to the Marine Corps Times, as names like “seaman” could be scrapped.
The military occupation specialities (MOS) were agreed to be changed in name after a month-long review ordered by the Navy secretary Ray Mabus, one month after defense secretary Ash Carter demanded that all military jobs be opened up to women.
A formal announcement is expected within a few days.
From an original list of 33 names, terms such as “rifleman” and “mortarman” remain the same.
“Names that were not changed, like rifleman, are steeped in Marine Corps history and ethos,” an anonymous official told the publication. "Things that were changed needed to be updated to align with other MOS names.”
The remaining names will mostly change the word “man” to “marine”, including “basic infantry marine”, “light armor vehicle marine” and “fire support marine”.
One title - the anti-tank missileman - is the only position to switch to “gunner”.
Some titles that include the word “chief” and “specialist” were not updated as they were already gender-neutral.
Words like “manned” and “manpower” will not change as they are not describing the person doing the job.
Subscribe to Independent Premium to bookmark this article
Want to bookmark your favourite articles and stories to read or reference later? Start your Independent Premium subscription today.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments