Robert J. Edwards Prof.

Wilson & Tyler Box #: 1089

Women and the Home Front during World War II While the womens movement has its roots in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, a strong foothold took place with the necessity of women to leave their domestic lives behind to fill the need of employment that was left vacant by their husbands, who were off at war. Subsequently, after the war, many women chose not to return to their domestic lifestyles, and remained on in employment as a means of independence. After World War II, women now had a significant number in the once male dominated workforce. This impact can still be felt today, as most young women do seek employment, and make up almost half of the workforce in the United States. Traditionally the womans place was thought to be in the home. She was responsible for cooking, cleaning, taking care of the children, and looking her best. So when the war broke out, and it was clear that America would not be able to win the war without the help of their women, the "traditional" housewife and mother turned into wartime worker. (Giampaoli, 1) With over 10 million American men at war, the only way America was going to win the war was to attract women to traditional male roles in the workplace, such as assembly line worker, factory worker, mill worker, and even construction worker. The government created a full-on assault of advertising techniques to bring women to work. Posters, commercials, newspaper ads and even door-to-door civic groups urged the American woman that it was her patriotic duty to help out in any way. The goal of the propaganda was not only to recruit as many women as possible into war positions previously held by men, but also an attempt to distinguish the prevailing negative attitude of women workers. (Judge, 1)

However, this wartime propaganda machine did not immediately produce the kind of results the government anticipated. There were old discriminations still being carried out by industry across the nation. Cristina Giampaoli states, Though women were turning out for jobs at alarming rates, many employers refused to hire them (even though they had unmet labor requirements.) Some employers out rightly refused to hire women, while others set ridiculously low hiring quotas for women, and still some agreed to employee women, yet they refused to offer them jobs previously "assigned to men." These practices left women feeling very confused as to how America wanted its women to behave. Most people believed that men should be the sole breadwinners in the family, and as a result women were among the last hired in the early stages of the war. But these practices would soon end, as eventually most industry saw an immediate need for womens contributions in the work place. In addition, as women began to show that they could physically perform the duties previously held by their husbands, more companies were willing to take a chance on them. However, a womans pay was considerably less than a mans wages. A former employee of the National Weather Service, during the war, Kathryn C. Gray writes, We worked eight-hour shifts, six days a week. Our shifts were: 0000-0800; 0800-1600; 1600-2400; & 0600-1400. We worked 48 hours each week. The pay for some of the grades at that time was as follows: SP-3 -$1440 per annum; SP-4 - S1620 per annum; SP6 -$2320 per annum, less than half of my husbands annual salary. Servicemens wives had particularly compelling reasons to seek employment. Soldiers wives received a minimum of $50 a month, of which the government provided $28 and $22 was deducted from the husbands pay. Their wives had to seek employment to make up the loss of

income while their husbands were at war. Contrary to popular belief, the desire for selfexpression, personal satisfaction, or escape from domestic monotony counted little in womens decisions to take jobs. (Hartmann, 79) Over a third of all wartime workingwomen were mothers. They mainly worked the nightshift, and raced home to get their children ready for school. After doing some housework, the women would sleep for a few hours only to be awakened by their children coming home from school. This was very hard on the women. In addition to this, the government would send around soldiers who were sent home from the war as permanently injured Purple Heart recipients. This was done to encourage women to seek employment for the war effort. Katherine OGrady, who worked during the war, speaks of one such occasion, At the mill the government used to send out all the Purple Heart soldiers to talk to us and tell us that we couldn't take time off, and pushed all this patriotism on us. One particular day I had the day off and they went to my house. I wasn't home. It would have been embarrassing to have soldier with a Purple Heart on asking why I wasn't at work. These women workers became known as Rosie the Riveters for their hard working role in our nations industry sector. Women were picked to be Rosie spokeswomen for the wartime effort. Rosie was the symbol of the ideal woman: loyal, efficient, patriotic, and pretty. (Yellin, 43) When the war ended in 1945, several women did return to the domestic life, leaving their jobs behind. Some women were forced to give up their jobs, as their returning husbands would move back into their former roles as the main breadwinners of the household. However, many women continued on in their employment, having found a new sense of independence and freedom from the trappings of mundane domestic life. While women would continue to experience discrimination in a male-dominated workforce, the seed had been planted, and

women continued to make headway in male-run labor unions and agencies. One working mother found that the companionship of working with others is vastly more stimulating and rewarding than housework. (Hartmann, 80) Some women were eager to relinquish their roles as laborer, as the notion of returning to a former time of peace with their returning husbands was pleasing to them. Realizing their effort was as temporary as their soldier husbands, these women did not seek to labor as they had the past 3-4 years in hot factories, under rough conditions. Since the close of World War II, a womans role in the workplace has greatly increased. Today, women hold all types of jobs, and many have found their way to the top of their respective roles within their organization. Women find work challenging and engaging. The role of the domestic goddess has greatly decreased, as mothers of children are prone to also be employed full time as well as part time. All of this can be traced back to the governments urging for women to support their country by seeking employment. Katherine OGrady sees how her effort during World War II has impacted the way things are today, After the war things changed because women found out they could go out and they could survive. They could really do it on their own. That's where I think women's lib really started. So the whole world has changed. This gradual changing of attitudes, both in the minds of the women as well as the men, has provided a great resource for American industry in our women. Without their know-how, expertise, and cando attitude in the workplace, America may not have survived the after effects of the depression and subsequent entry into World War II. This was the first large-scale effort that thrust the womens movement into full gear, giving it considerable credibility in a society dominated by men.

Bibliography

Giampaoli, Cristina. A Call to Arms No Date Given. Women and World War II. < http://history.sandiego.edu/gen/st/~cg3/pagetwo.html>. Gray, Kathryn. Women in the Weather Bureau during World War II 1998. NOAA Library Catalog. <http://www.lib.noaa.gov/edocs/women.html+Women%27s+wages+during+world+war+2&hl=e n&ct=clnk&cd=2&gl=us>. Hartmann, Susan. American Women in the 1940s: The Home Front and Beyond. Boston, MA: Twayne Publishers, Inc, 1982. Judge, Alivia. Rosie the Riveter Spring 1998. Rosie the Riveter. <http://web.uccs.edu/history/student%20presentations/alivia/index.htm>. OGrady, Kathy. What did you do during the war, Grandma? 1995. World War II Women. < http://www.stg.brown.edu/projects/WWII_Women/Grandma.html>. Yellin, Emily. "Rosie the Riveter: Women Working During World War II No Date Given. National Park Service. < http://www.nps.gov/pwro/collection/website/rosie.htm>.