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[justagirl]

I was wondering if somebody can describe the work environment of the PTO.  Would you consider it liberal, conservative or neither, e.g., everybody minds their own business and keeps politics to themselves?

The reason I ask is that I'm thinking of working at the PTO as an Examiner, and have very liberal values.  I currently live in Minneapolis and love my job, but it's low pay and I would like to get out.  I'm part of the "L" in LGBT group  , and do have a girlfriend.  While I am not interested in displaying my lesbianic lifestyle, I do want to work in a non-hostile, judgment free, work environment.  I think it would be awful if I had a supervisor who judged me not for my work, but my values and lifestyle. 

Can anybody shed light on this who has worked at the PTO? 

     

[Wiscagent]

You are asking a reasonable question, but I can't answer it, I never worked at the PTO.

It's unfortunate that you are unable to find a better job in Minneapolis, it's a great city.

It is a sad commentary on American politics that being politically conservative implies close-minded and intrusive.  Unfortunately, today most politicians who call themselves "conservatives" have selected a few issues where they believe that freedom is important.  And LGBT rights are not among those few selected issues.

Years ago, conservatives of the William Buckley school were broadly concerned about individual rights.    But somehow politics have gotten locked into a right-left, conservative-liberal map.  I don't know how filling the next Supreme Court seat will work out; but I cringe when I hear the discussion argued in such simplistic terms.

[klaviernista]

I used to work at the PTO, though it has been quite some time.  I still have friends there, however, and they say that  the environment is largely the same.

I think you will find all political mindsets represented fairly well at the PTO.  It doesn't seem to attract or deter any one particular group.  For the most part everyone minds their own business.  The one exception that comes to mind is the Patent Office Professional Association (the examiner's union).  Those folks are a PITA and fall to the far, far, far, left (liberal) when it comes to labor related issues.  The vast majority of examiner's are members of the union, but I doubt that a significant fraction of the membership likes or agrees with how the union does business or the positions it advocates.

Apart from the political mindset, you should expect a "library-like" atmosphere at the PTO, at least in the main office sections.  Most examiner's work quietly in their offices, often with their door shut.  There is little socialization outside of the typical break times (lunch, possibly afternoon coffee), and little non-business interaction between art units.  It can be pretty isolating, so you will have to find a way to spice it up.  Also, the hotelling benefit is excellent (in that it lets an examiner live and work pretty much anywhere), but it exacerbates the isolation even more than being in the office.

Personally, I enjoyed working at the PTO.  But I came to the USPTO from a national lab where I was working on top secret, secure compartmentalized information (TS-SCI) projects.  My lab was in a locked room in the basement of a building with no windows.  So the USPTO was a breath of fresh air for me. At least there, every door wasn't locked with an 8 digit cypher lock.

[klaviernista]

Also, I have many friends at the PTO who would fall into the LGBT group (all flavors, actually).  As far as I know, they have not had any problems moving up the ranks or with others at the PTO.  Not to say that there won't be at least one person with strong beliefs against your lifestyle (there surely is).  But any anti LGBT sentiment seemed to be held in check when I was at the PTO, and that was quite a while ago.

[horsechute]

I think the PTO is slightly over towards the conservative line, as it comprises largely engineers, who tend to be of a conservative bent (especially civil, and to a slightly lesser extent, EE's). I also think it may have a slightly conservative bent because a lot of examiners come from foreign countries, and come here with nothing, and discipline tends to make you see things conservatively. And the fact that the pay is good makes them especially disdainful of high taxes, especially since they generally don't own their own businesses and get a lot of tax write-offs. Then again, most people historically don't stay at the PTO very long, so it is hard to generalize.

I would not worry about any gender orientation issues. To the extent you might find bigots in any job, in this respect, the PTO is no different. One of the former Commisioners of the PTO of late was gay, and in many people's view, including my own, he was the best leader the PTO has had in years, and his sexual orientation was really a non-issue.

There was a Commisioner a few years back before him who was gay as well. I admired his dedication to IP, disliked his allegedly bad temper, and liked how he seemed to stand up for the little people working in the hot, sweaty little rooms doing menial work. Maybe I am wrong, but I thought that it could be that being on the outside looking in gave him a perspective of what it is like to work in an organization where a fair number of people make good livings, and others get to look on.

[dablueman]

Can anybody shed light on this who has worked at the PTO?       

I work at the PTO and if I had to guess from the people who I know I'd say 60/40 donkeys to elephants, though most people keep their politics to themselves. Remember that the majority of the examining corp is now young "folk" who tend to lean left (and on average move more right as they age).

While I am not interested in displaying my lesbianic lifestyle, I do want to work in a non-hostile, judgment free, work environment.  I think it would be awful if I had a supervisor who judged me not for my work, but my values and lifestyle.      

It's very unlikely to be an issue, and that's assuming your SPE would even know.

Also, I have many friends at the PTO who would fall into the LGBT group (all flavors, actually).  As far as I know, they have not had any problems moving up the ranks or with others at the PTO.  Not to say that there won't be at least one person with strong beliefs against your lifestyle (there surely is).  But any anti LGBT sentiment seemed to be held in check when I was at the PTO, and that was quite a while ago.

From what I can tell it's the same way now. As a government office, discrimination is taken very seriously. Also factoring into the equation is how extremely diverse the office is. It's very "United Nations"-like, which in my experience leads to a more accepting working environment.

[Yet another examiner]

I was wondering if somebody can describe the work environment of the PTO.  Would you consider it liberal, conservative or neither, e.g., everybody minds their own business and keeps politics to themselves?

The examiners are mostly young and college-educated, so it's not the demographic that's really going to spazz out if they see a LGBT. 60/40 Dem/Repub seems about right, but for the most part I think people just mind their own business. Mostly, people won't know unless you go around the office in an Indigo Girls t-shirt.

Your SPE might be a bit older/conservative, but I still think he's less likely to give you a hassle than in most other venues. Also, the gov't has a fairly solid EEOC program.

Also, "lesbianic" is a fantastic neologism. I plan on using it semi-weekly.

[justagirl]

Thanks for all the great responses.  Now I just need to get into the PTO 

[LivingItUp]

  Would you consider it liberal, conservative or neither, e.g., everybody minds their own business and keeps politics to themselves?

     

It is like getting gig in Nancy Pelosi's office.

You'll be fine.

[stuffball]

This info may be dated, but my anecdotal impression of quite a few years ago was that the PTO examining corps leaned slightly toward the conservative side.  I mean purely politically, I'm not sure how or if this impacts how they see LGBT issues.

[lukertin]

This info may be dated, but my anecdotal impression of quite a few years ago was that the PTO examining corps leaned slightly toward the conservative side.  I mean purely politically, I'm not sure how or if this impacts how they see LGBT issues.

Conservative may be a misnomer.  Fiscally conservative, perhaps.  Socially conservative...maybe with the older employees but definitely not with the younger ones.

[bleedingpen]

This info may be dated, but my anecdotal impression of quite a few years ago was that the PTO examining corps leaned slightly toward the conservative side.  I mean purely politically, I'm not sure how or if this impacts how they see LGBT issues.

Conservative may be a misnomer.  Fiscally conservative, perhaps.  Socially conservative...maybe with the older employees but definitely not with the younger ones.

That is kind of the trend you are seeing with a lot of educated, younger (late 20s, early 30s) folks across America.  They understand that left leaning fiscal policies may lead us to bankruptcy and right leaning social policies may lead us to another civil war. 

[JustAnotherExaminer]

Please keep in mind:  We are fully accepting of participants in the keggers held on campus and winners of the "whose patent application can hit the ground first when dropped from the 10th floor window" competitions.

[MYK]

Please keep in mind:  We are fully accepting of participants in the keggers held on campus and winners of the "whose patent application can hit the ground first when dropped from the 10th floor window" competitions.

But what about "pants optional Fridays"?

[MYK]

This info may be dated, but my anecdotal impression of quite a few years ago was that the PTO examining corps leaned slightly toward the conservative side.  I mean purely politically, I'm not sure how or if this impacts how they see LGBT issues.

Conservative may be a misnomer.  Fiscally conservative, perhaps.  Socially conservative...maybe with the older employees but definitely not with the younger ones.

That is kind of the trend you are seeing with a lot of educated, younger (late 20s, early 30s) folks across America.  They understand that left leaning fiscal policies may leadalready have led us to bankruptcy and right leaning social policies may lead us to another civil war. 

Sorta fixed.  Corrected first half.  Don't want to address second half.