Blue-Collar Workforce

“Blue collar” refers to workers who are not “white collar,” implying that they do not work in an office. Traditionally this means manufacturing workers, drivers, logistics workers, laborers, construction workers and retail workers. These frontline or hands-on workers are now considered “essential workers” because they form the fundamental basis of our daily experiences in the economy. The “white collar” workforce often refers to people who work in offices or are considered knowledge workers (e.g., IT workers, marketing, finance, executives). “Gray collar” refers to people who do both. The term “no-collar” worker is often used to refer to gig, contract, or part-time workers. 

With the advent of hybrid work, the notion of office-based workers is getting disrupted. Thus, we refer to blue-collar workers as “deskless workers,” thereby differentiating between deskless and deskbound workers by describing deskless workers as those who can’t do their work remotely or who are location independent. Thus, deskless workers may also include highly knowledgeable workers like nurses, physicians, educators, or corporate salespeople, even management consultants.