A woman has revealed her male co-worker’s shocking response after announcing she was pregnant.
In a viral video posted to TikTok, user Martha Rosey (@martharoseyy) highlighted the difficulties of working as a woman in a male-dominated field when she described her co-worker’s reaction to her pregnancy. “I told everybody at work today that I’m pregnant and before I even found out I was pregnant, there’s this – I work in a lab, so it’s just all men,” Rosey began her video, which has since been viewed more than two million times.
“This one guy in there, he was talking to me one day,” the 24-year-old engineer continued. “I work in a lab by myself. He comes into my lab one day and he goes, ‘Did your parents pay for you to go to college?’ And I was like, ‘No.’”
However, her co-worker pushed further and asked whether Rosey’s parents had established a 529 savings plan to help pay for college. When she once again clarified that her parents didn’t fund her education, the male co-worker responded: “Then how did you go to college?”
Rosey explained to him that she was able to pay for college through scholarships and financial aid, though she is currently paying off student loans. The man still didn’t seem to understand how she was able to get through college and suggested she open a Roth IRA savings account for retirement.
“He goes on to say, ‘Well, if you ever want to have kids you could just start one for them,’” Rosey recalled. “Just to end the conversation I said something along the lines of, ‘I’m not having kids.’ Obviously it’s not true, I just wanted to end the conversation.”
The TikToker’s interaction with her male co-worker provided context for her followers, as she went on to describe their most recent conversation after announcing she was pregnant. “Today I announced at our group meeting that I’m pregnant and he walks by me as the meeting ends and he goes, ‘Hmm, really sounds like you didn’t want to have kids,’” Rosey shared.
In her caption, she also revealed that her male co-worker had told her she needed to go back to school to get a real job, despite already working as an engineer in a lab.
Thousands of viewers were shocked to learn how Rosey’s colleague responded to her pregnancy, and questioned how such a conversation could be allowed in a workplace setting. She clarified in the comments section that she was “too shocked to say anything back” to the man, as many people urged her to file a complaint with her human resources department.
“The audacity he had to ask such questions in the first place is beyond me,” one TikToker commented, to which Rosey replied: “Same. And out of nowhere too.”
Another user was confused why the man felt the need to question Rosey about her finances in the first place, asking: “Either way, how is it any of his business how college was paid for?”
“Right. I have no idea what even prompted him to come ask me,” Rosey wrote back.
A third person commented: “Is he intentionally rude or just not emotionally intelligent? I worked alone in a lab too and came across both for sure lol.”
Nevertheless, Rosey’s viral video gave fellow women the opportunity to open up about their negative experiences working in a male-dominated industry.
“My old engineering boss referred to me being pregnant as ‘my situation’ during my entire pregnancy. Being a woman in STEM is cool,” one user sarcastically commented.
“A male co-worker told me I was too young and irresponsible and should move in with my parents so they can raise my baby,” another woman revealed.
“When I was telling co-workers about my pregnancy one of my male co-workers asked me if it was on purpose,” a third person said, while someone else simply wrote: “As a fellow lab engineer girly, this is the most accurate thing I’ve seen.”
The Independent has contacted Rosey for comment.
Back in 2022, a Fox News host sparked backlash after he questioned why an employer would give a pregnant woman an “important” job. Fox & Friends co-host Brian Kilmeade made the comment on-air while discussing the creation of a new advisory board to the Department of Homeland Security. Nina Jankowicz, an author and communications advisor to the Ukrainian government, was appointed to lead the board while also eight months pregnant at the time.
“I’m not sure how you get a job and then you just, you can’t do a job for three months,” Kilmeade said during the broadcast. “I’m not faulting her, but I don’t know why you would give someone a job that you think is so important.”
In a previous broadcast, the Fox News host once again criticised Jankowicz’s appointment to the advisory board by attacking her pregnancy. “If you’re going to take over a brand new bureau, shouldn’t you not need maternity leave the first few weeks in?” Kilmeade asked. “Just saying.”
