As war continued in other countries, America's stock market had crashed on Wall Street in 1929. It cleaned out millions of investors plus the failing of bank operations and caused nearly 13 to 15 million people to be unemployed. At the same time of this era, Franklin D. Roosevelt had created many relief programs to weaken the worried effects of the Great Depression revolving around them. It continued until 1939 when World War II began and American Men had been drafted into the War allied with Great Britain, Soviet Union, France and the United Kingdom. Industrial Factories all around the United States were in dire need of workers to produce, manufacture and sell what items a factory produced. Women were also in need of money to provide for their
Industrial factories were damaged like steel, rubber, and chemical engineering. Most of these jobs were employed by male workers. As the Depression hit America, male workers were affected more than female workers due to the manufacturing industry which recovered faster than the Heavy Industry. More male workers lost their job rather than female workers. Some women also had more higher wage opportunity in work such as teaching, nursing, and domestic service. But rather than improving wages, female workers still suffered during the Great Depression to many obstacles of finding a job because their husbands had been laid off or because of their wages being cut. By the 1933, the unemployment had double from 20% to 50% of female workers. African American Females struggled more during the 1930s such as African American workers being replaced by white female workers of domestic servants in urban areas. Some came together on city corners hoping to find work for low-paid labor. By 1935, 25% of African American were receiving government relief
Women were more at risk for their job duties as ambulance drivers, and air raid wardens. Thus, again causing another reason to agree for the equal rights movement for both men and women in the industrial work field.
By late 1943, there was more than 310,000 women working in the unites states aircraft which was 65% more than that of those who worked previously before the war. This amount was the greatest increase in aviation industry. Along with working in factory’s, nearly 350,000 women joined the military either at home service base or overseas. many were pilots whose job was to transfer cargo from factories to military bases. While others participated in simulation strafing and target missions.
After the war ended, many women still had a desire to work in the industrial field and earn money with their husband who had returned home after serving in the military. It was a beautiful time to be a strong independent woman in the 1930s to 1940s. As a factor of these events, Women strongly upheld America’s work force during and after World War
Beginning with the aggressive recruiting methods utilized to bring them in, and ending with the return of men from the war -- especially veterans -, women became extremely active in the working force during World War II. This was evident at the Brooklyn Navy Yard, where four thousand and six hundred women were employed. Even though they remained employed for up to six months after the war, eventually men did return to their positions, leaving only women veterans still qualified to hold a position there. However, the focus of a speech on this matter by Dr. Sparr was the activity that occurred during these women's employment.
During the time of 1940-1945 a big whole opened up in the industrial labor force because of the men enlisting. World War II was a hard time for the United States and knowing that it would be hard on their work force, they realized they needed the woman to do their part and help in any way they can. Whether it is in the armed forces or at home the women showed they could help out. In the United States armed forces about 350,000 women served at home and abroad. The woman’s work force in the United States increased from 27 percent to nearly 37percent, and by 1945 nearly one out of every four married woman worked outside the home. This paper will show the way the United States got the woman into these positions was through propaganda from
“There was much more to women’s work during World War Two than make, do, and mend. Women built tanks, worked with rescue teams, and operated behind enemy lines” (Carol Harris). Have you ever thought that women could have such an important role during a war? In 1939 to 1945 for many women, World War II brought not only sacrifices, but also a new style of life including more jobs, opportunities and the development of new skills. They were considered as America’s “secret weapon” by the government. Women allowed getting over every challenge that was imposed by a devastating war. It is necessary to recognize that women during this period brought a legacy that produced major changes in social norms and work in America.
The Great Depression of the 1930s was a catastrophic time period of international stock market crashes, economic downfall, and drop in world trade. This led millions of Americans to become poor overnight, spiraling them into poverty. Consequently, many factories, businesses and construction projects slowed down. With production at a minimum, many workers were let go. Those who kept their jobs saw their salaries drop. Soon, the streets were filled with bread lines, soup kitchens, and many homeless people. Even farmers throughout the nation were affected by this event and were forced to leave their harvesting crops rotting in the fields. In 1932, President Franklin Delano Roosevelt, introduced to Congress the New Deal. The programs and projects of the New Deal were designed to help America and her citizens get back on their feet. The Public Workers Administration (PWA) was created by the National Industry Recovery Act on June 16, 1933 by the President's first female cabinet member, Frances Perkins, along with Harold Ickes, James Farley, and Henry
Fifty percent of the women who took war jobs were black and Hispanic and lower-class women who were already working. They switched from low paying female jobs to higher-paying factory jobs. Even more women were needed, so companies went out searching for women just graduating from high school. Eventually, married women were needed even though no one wanted them to work. They definitely did not want women working especially if they had young children. It was hard to get married women because even if they wanted to work, 90 percent of their husbands did not want them to. At first, women with kids under 14 were told to stay home to take care of them. The government was afraid that a rise in working mothers would lead to a rise in juvenile delinquency. After awhile, the amount of the workers needed in the job force was so high that even women with children under 6 years old took jobs.
The 1932 presidential election came in the midst of the greatest economic depression experienced by the American people. Never before in the history of the United States has pessimism been so universal. The descent from the height of prosperity of the late 1920s had been rapid, bringing fear and uncertainty. By March 1932 approximately 12 million men and women were unemployed. By March 1933 unemployment had reached 13.5 million. In the hard-hit cities, long lines of hungry people waited before charity soup kitchens for something to eat, and thousands unable to pay rent, huddled in empty lots. Homeless people made shelters out of old packing cartons. More than one million Americans wandered through the country aimlessly looking for work.
When all the men were across the ocean fighting a war for world peace, the home front soon found itself in a shortage for workers. Before the war, women mostly depended on men for financial support. But with so many gone to battle, women had to go to work to support themselves. With patriotic spirit, women one by one stepped up to do a man's work with little pay, respect or recognition. Labor shortages provided a variety of jobs for women, who became street car conductors, railroad workers, and shipbuilders. Some women took over the farms, monitoring the crops and harvesting and taking care of livestock. Women, who had young children with nobody to help them, did what they could do to help too. They made such things for the soldiers overseas, such as flannel shirts, socks and scarves.
Many factors affected the changes in women’s employment. The change that occurred went through three major phases: the prewar period in the early 1940s, the war years from 1942-1944, and the post war years from around 1945-1949. The labor shortage that occurred as men entered the military propelled a large increase in women’s entrance into employment during the war. Men's return to the civilian workforce at the end of the war caused the sudden drop to prewar levels. The cause of the sudden decline during post war years of women in the paid workforce is unclear. Many questions are left unanswered: What brought women into the war industry, ...
When the United States entered World War I in 1917, millions of men were sent to join allied forces and many jobs were lack of labors. In the meantime, the war led high deaths and injuries. Therefore, most women had started to take a role to manage families and took the place of men and their jobs as men had gone for flight during the war. According to a research (Consena and Rubio, n.d. P.156), women usually recruited and worked in dangerous job positions, such as air flight, dangerous
The Great Depression was felt worldwide, some countries more than others. During this time many Americans had to live in poor conditions. In the United states, 25 percent of the workers and 37 percent of all nonfarm workers lost their job(Smiley 1). Unemployment rates had increased to a 24.9 percent during 1933(Shmoop 1). Unable to pay mortgages, many families lost their homes. The cause of this was the Stock Market crash in 1929. Many investors of the stock market panicked and sold all their stocks. The results of this include frightened Americans withdrawing all their saving causing and hoarding it in their homes many banks to shut down and less money to circulate in the economy. Although the economy had taken a dramatic blow, there was hope. A new program was administered by the government to help people suffering from the depression. The Works Progress Administration (WPA) program helped improve lives of Americans affected by the Great Depression.
“The War led to a dramatic rise in the number of women working in the United States; from 10.8 million in March, 1941, to more than 18 million in August, 1944…” (Miller). Although the United States couldn’t have been as successful in the war without their efforts, most of
During the great Depression, many people in the city were unemployed. A third of American farmers lost their land and had to move to city to search for jobs. Many African Americans were unemployed in the south, since white have priority over the job market than African Americans, it’s harder for them to get a job. African American started to move to North to search, but little difference did it make. Many took the position as janitors, street cleaners, and domestic servants. Mexican American and Chinese American were no better off, whites started to take over those jobs for Mexican and Chinese American. Women started to search for jobs as their family needed the money.
The article was published on February 6, 1943 in the midst of World War II. Women had become an asset to the war effort and were then considered "At Home Soldiers" or "Riveters". They worked in the factories constructing submarines for the Navy, planes for the Air Force, and became medics.
Rosie the riveter was the face of recruiting women into the Armed Forces during WWII. The increasing demand for soldiers was not being filled fast enough by just males. As a result, between the years 1940 and 1945, the percentage of female service members increased from 27% to 37%. Even on the civilian side of things, the ratio of married working women outside of their homes increased to one out of every four. The population of women that did not join the war was prompted by Rosie the Riveter’s iconic image to work in one of the many munitions industries throughout the US. In 1943, not only had the female population contributed exponential numbers in support of the war; but women had begun to dominate. Reports indicate that more than 310,000 women worked in the U.S. aircraft industry; this made up more than half of the total workforce. Prior to this moment in history, women’s involvement in the aircraft industry was merely one percent.
During America’s involvement in World War Two, which spanned from 1941 until 1945, many men went off to fight overseas. This left a gap in the defense plants that built wartime materials, such as tanks and other machines for battle. As a result, women began to enter the workforce at astonishing rates, filling the roles left behind by the men. As stated by Cynthia Harrison, “By March of [1944], almost one-third of all women over the age of fourteen were in the labor force, and the numbers of women in industry had increased almost 500 percent. For the first time in history, women were in the exact same place as their male counterparts had been, even working the same jobs. The women were not dependent upon men, as the men were overseas and far from influence upon their wives.