I'd imagine in many cases it really is as simple as something to talk about once the weather's been dealt with and awkward silences loom. Though I agree it's poorly thought out, a much more useful question would be what do you like to do with your spare time.

It's not a question I ask people, dates or otherwise, as I'm not overly happy being asked it myself. It's information better offered at a comfortable time, or at the very least asked at a point where it doesnt significantly affect what you've so far learnt about the person, once it's established that you basically get on and are happy sharing information.

A profession for many is the largest aspect of a person's life and will tell me a lot about them. In my opinion two of the most important questions you can ask someone to find out as much as you can about them are "what do you do for work/fun?"

What you do for 40 hours a week will mold and shape who you are. Assumptions are always poor form, but a construction worker rarely has to work with clients or press their intellectual envelope in order to do their job successfully. If a person has been doing that job for 10 years, then most likely they've accepted those aspects of their life and are somewhat content with it.

On the flip side if someone told me they spend 60 doing some other hobby, I'd ask more about the hobby as that will now tell me a lot about who they are.

There is no getting around the fact that who you spend your time with and what you spend your time doing shape who you are.

I would not ask the question as bluntly as you posed it. If I were to ask the question, it would be to add substance to my image of who that person is and what makes them tick.

Just saw this and giggled

To address your direct lead-off question: My reason for asking a woman what she does for a living would come from a genuine curiosity about it. Would I ask that question right out of the gate? Probably not. But it would come up. I think it's perfectly reasonable to ask someone what their occupation is. A person's occupation can speak volumes to their passion (if they are so fortunate as to be doing work they are passionate about). So this is a great way to learn about them and what moves and motivates them. I understand your distaste of having that question asked if it is being used as some sort of status barometer in order to pass judgment. That's just plain wrong, IMHO.

I ask them to tell me 1 thing that they like about their job. I am more interested in their personality & outlook than I am in their paycheck or bank balance.

It's not just men/women. Our society defines people by occupation. The first thing a LOT of people ask when meeting ANYONE is what they do for a living.

I think for many men, their job and/or career is so tied up with their sense of their worth as a human being that to them it seems like a very deep and meaningful question. This is also reflected in what happens when they retire: many men leave work for the final time, go home, sit on the sofa and die a few years later. Women, meanwhile, tend to get involved in all sorts of stuff post-retirement and often enjoy many decades after work.

That's in no way a criticism of men, but itis a criticism of the patriarchy - men being indoctrinated into believing that they must be dynamic, go-getting career-obsessed drones does neither men nor women (nor the rest) any favours at all. So, tell your boss to screw themselves, do only as much work as you need to do to get by, get a hobby and enjoy yourself.

So why wouldn't you ask? There might be some potential for stereotyping but I believe in a positive rather than negative manner. I would probably not consider a librarian as boring or a real estate sales as greedy but would have a positive view of a female fighter pilot. I'm in the renewable energy field and have been for forty years. What might that say about me?

To find out what she does for a living.

You’re trying to get to know a person, right? That’s 1/3 of their day. It’s also an invitation for them to speak about themselves.

Mostly as a means of rounding out the conversation and learning more about the person in question. Realistically, on very few occasions where I have asked, did the answer really spur the conversation to new heights.

I don't mind being asked what I do for a living. And anyone who is going to make assumptions about me is not going to be someone who is going to be compatible with me anyway.
I guess I ask the question as a small talk get-to-know-eachother type of question.

It's not something I would think to ask right away. Though if I were going to invite her to go outside to smoke some pot, it would be a good idea to make sure she's not a cop.

For me there are probably several reasons and Just Curious would be the least of the reasons. Please don't assume 'us' is men in this response, I'm trying to be gender neutral.

Initially its a conversation starter/"greaser" in that their reply can help us navigate to the next set of questions. Oh you're a botonist; clearly they are intelligent and like plants, thus we choose a line of questions that help them feel at ease. Helps us with determining shared experiences too.

Helps us determine social, economic, and educational compatibility; oh you're a pro-life attorney, well I work with Planned Parenthood maybe we won't work out. Obviously just because she has a PhD and he barely finished 8th grade doesn't make them incompatible, but the question helps determine how much we each have to put into this relationship.

To see how much you like doing what you're doing or do you have bigger plans than what you're doing.

Out of respect for the idea that you work hard too at whatever you do.

There are probably many more reasons, but these are my intial thoughts.

I think people learn from an early age to put labels on everything and they like to lump similar things together, most kids will remember the Sesame Street game, 1 of these things is not like the others for example. So it is only normal for people to want to put a label on somebody they just met by finding out what they do for work because most people define themselves by what they do and by DO I mean work. This gives a whole pile of information about a person with just a few words because what we do often is an indication of how we think, what our income levels are, are we intellectually biased or more physically driven, are we extroverted or introverted, etc. etc. These are just superficial guesstimates because I have known structural engineers who are highly artistic and creative and artists who are very concerned with science and structure in their work or accountants who are extremely extroverted, etc.
When people ask me what I do for a living I now answer them in a way that is truthful but which suits me best based upon my superficial sense of what kind of person they are based upon looks, dress, handshake and how they present themselves. I might just say that I am early retired, or that I am a master builder, or a real estate developer, or a carpenter, or a writer, or a microbiologist, or a politician - all of the above are true but what I tell someone will depend upon who and what I take them for, what I might possibly want from them and just how I am feeling at the moment because I know that they will modify their opinion of me based upon which answer I give them.

Since most of our hours of the day are spent working, I find it fascinating not just what they do, by why that chose that career path. If it's part-time or if they have a few part-time jobs. Do they live for the weekends? Are they downtrodden because of their job? Do they bring their work home with them? Do they have a work-life balance?
I usually ask later and see if I can learn something new from them, different perspective on how they work, even if it's in an industry unrelated.

It's called small talk. Would you rather me asj you about the weather?

Tells many things, if she's working vs. solely taking care of kids, the type of work can give a clue as to intelligence, advanced degree etc., if she has time to date (some jobs are time intensive) and of course the normal small talk to see if you may have some interest, topic or industry and the people that go with them in common.

So work is something we do for a good portion of our lives. It's the start of a story. If I meet someone that is really smart and she is a waitress, that's interesting to me. Is money not important? Is she in school? Maybe she is a lawyer, do you work for civil rights, Chase ambulances? And then why? I think the why is more important.
Also, I have a curious mind, so I might know something about her job and we can discuss, but also might be able to learn something. The job we pick and why tells an interesting story.

Curiosity. Trying to find common ground, something to talk about, or just learning more about the woman.

I breathe, eat , drink & be merry for a living. No not that kind of MARRY. =0}

I ask because I'm curious about how a person spends their day. Work is such a huge part of our lives, and asking where, or for whom, they work allows a peek into that slice if time. It also might provide fodder for additional questions, if it's an interesting or unusual career/job.

On a date, maybe to learn her education or other things about her personality. One's job reveals much.

Not on a date, it's small talk or may branch to other more interesting topics.

What you do for a living is probably how you spend the majority of time compared to any other activity. It's an easy thing to talk about. If they do something different than me it's easy to ask a follow up question and let them talk about what they do and make them important. If They do something I do or have done we can relate.