February 2001 ISSUE

This Woman's Work

In the last issue our reporters opened the door to an untold side of working in the high tech world. These young men wrote of deception, thrown-out backs and blood sucking machines. An eye-opening description of the experiences of being young and temporary in Silicon Valley, these stories were of the safe side -- the guys' side.

From across the assembly line, the bathroom floor and the front lobby of high tech companies, three reporters file from the frontlines of Silicon Valley --from a women's perspective. Even as Silicon Valley leads the world into the next millennium, women are still the ones who clean up after everyone leaves, put the final touches on the products before they get shipped off, get the coffee and courteously answer the phones in their skirts and blouses.

Theirs are the jobs that get no props, but would completely crush the Valley if they didn't get done. The reason why Silicon Valley has its clean, well-kept image. The work not only goes unnoticed, but they are some of the most dangerous jobs in the Valley. The electronic manufacturing plants where most women assemble products and clean the machines are filled with lethal industrial chemicals. Many of these toxins are invisible to the eye and leave no scent: they are hidden poisons.

This summer the San Jose Mercury News came out with a list revealing the 10 Most Influential People in Silicon Valley. Some were young, some were people of color. None were women.

-- Raj Jayadev, Editor

1)Behind the Desk:
A Receptionist's Day
--- Shana White

2)Cleaning the Clean Industry
-- An Interview with Marina Vargas. Interview by Liz Gonzalez.

3)Mindless Monotony
-- Liz Gonzalez