The terms "white collar" and "blue collar" when referring to types of employment are fairly outdated. The terms used to be quite accurate with people who held "white collar" jobs being required to wear white collared shirts and people who held "blue collar" jobs, such as someone who built farm fencing, being required to wear blue collared work shirts.

These days the terms are still used but they are not literal anymore. Now someone who is in a "white collar" job, such as the manager of a window weight company, will be required to dress well for work, but will not likely be required to wear a white collared shirt. Likewise, someone who holds a "blue collar" job will generally be able to wear anything that is comfortable and appropriate and will rarely be seen in a blue collared shirt.

A "white collar" job generally just refers to a an office job. A white collar worker usually works indoors at a desk. A "blue collar" job is usually a hands on labor job, and blue collar workers are often employed outdoors or in factories. It should be noted that jobs are either blue or white collar, not companies. Many companies employ both blue and white collar workers. For example, the bookkeeper at a company that sells used woodworking machines would be a white collar employee, but the person who repairs the machines would be a blue collar employee.

In addition to the type of work that is performed there are some other differences between blue collar and white collar workers. Often, but not always, white collar workers, such as the manager of a car dealer supply store, will be salaried workers. This means that they are paid a set wage for doing their job, their income is not dependent on the number of hours they work. Blue collar workers, on the other hand, are usually paid an hourly wage. Their income is directly related to the number of hours that they work.

In terms of education, both types of job generally required some type of formal education. White collar workers generally are expected to have a university education while blue collar workers will often have trade certification. Both types of employment might involve on the job training, someone who works manufacturing heat resistant tape will likely have on the job training about how to use the machines and maintain safety.