blue-collar

American  

[bloo-kol-er] / ˈbluˈkɒl ər /

adjective

1. of or relating to wage-earning workers who wear work clothes or other specialized clothing on the job, as mechanics, longshoremen, and miners.

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noun

1. a blue-collar worker.

blue-collar British  

adjective

1. of, relating to, or designating manual industrial workers Compare white-collar pink-collar

   a blue-collar union

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blue-collar Cultural  

1. A descriptive term widely used for manual laborers, as opposed to white-collar for office workers.

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Discover More

The term is often associated with conservative values.

Etymology

Origin of blue-collar

First recorded in 1945–50

Compare meaning

How does blue-collar compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• blue-collar vs. white-collar

Example Sentences

If not, he has warned that he would have to raise property tax rates in the city, a move that would affect a swath of New Yorkers, including blue-collar and middle-class homeowners.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 25, 2026

The kind of job insecurity that once seemed the province of hourly, blue-collar jobs haunts white-collar professions these days.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 24, 2026

That division was clear when AFP visited Levittown, a blue-collar area on the outskirts of Philadelphia lined with car dealerships and auto repair shops.

From Barron's • Mar. 21, 2026

My entire career, I felt like a blue-collar working-class actor trying to be in the best movies and do the best work I possibly can.

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 25, 2026

The blue-collar factory jobs that had been plentiful in urban areas in the 1950s and 1960s had suddenly disappeared.

From "The New Jim Crow" by Michelle Alexander

Related Words

• apprentice
• blue-collar worker