The Change of American Women's Status during World War 2

The Change of American Women's Status during WWII Name Institutional Affiliation The Change of American Women's Status during WWII Introduction The entry of the United States into the Second World War had a significant impact on social and economic status of women. Before the WWII, American women had occupied the least status in society. They had been considered stay-at-home mothers while their husbands participated in matters affecting the economy. The entry of the U.S into the war implied demand for military weapons and garments from the American factories. Since most men had been mobilized to take arms and represent the country in war, women had to work in factories to supply labor and produce garments and weapons for men in war. I argue that WWII created employment opportunities for women which later propelled them towards economic independence in society. Employment Rate of Women during WWII Women have always contributed to the social, political, and economic welfare of the United States, but never in history has this role been impactful compared to the WWII. Before the WWII, men had negative attitudes towards women, believing that women had to quit employment to reserve positions for unemployed men. Nevertheless, the onset of the WWII tremendously impacted employment patterns. Gildons and Ollivetti (2013) explain that various norms loosened during the WW2. The number of employed women rose by seven million between 1940 and 1945 due to mobilization efforts by states and the national government. The war opened doors for women to take up jobs that had been traditionally reserved for men. Employers played a significant role in shaping the attitude of women towards work. The government was concerned about winning the war, creating a significant demand for manpower in industries. Women that proved efficient were promoted to higher ranks to work as supervisors. In the agricultural sector, the war created a shortage of labor supply. The need to fill gaps left by men mad it possible for women to transcend traditional barriers. When factories and industries realized shortage of labor and skills, they introduced what Gildons and Ollivetti (2013) refer to as selective trainings. Industries started training women on relevant skills such as working in factories for production of ammunitions, operating fire engines, and working in evacuation sites as nurses. Trainings happened inside the plants or outside the plants with goal of equipping women with on-job skills. While some women were driven by the spirit of patriotism to work in factories and help prevent the fall of the allied powers, some women also took up the responsibility of fending for families to work in the battlefields. Jaworski (2014) explains that WW2 halted the educational requirements and graduation rates from universities, leading to a change in the employment requirements. Women’s education had been limited during pre-war years, making it impossible for them to acquire quality employment opportunities. Women that had acquired selective trainings used it as a tradeoff for schooling, leading to their increase in the employment sectors during the war. Even though there was uneven change in the employment rates for women, Gildons and Ollivetti (2013) explain that between 1939 and 1945, the number of women aged above fourteen years had grown by thirty-seven percent. This was attributed to mobilization efforts that had sought to secure labor force for industries. By the end of 1945, Gildons and Ollivetti (2013) explain that there were over 4.7 million employed and earning as clerks in the United States alone. Other sectors that had a significant number of female employees production workers, farm operatives, and nurses. This had a direct impact on some of the traditional jobs that had been reserved for women. For instance, Gildons and Ollivetti (2013) explain that the number of domestic workers dropped, similar to other occupations like laundry and restaurant industries that were paying women low wages. When selecting jobs, women became selective on the available benefits and the salary offers in place. As such, most women had developed negotiation skills by the time the war was coming to an end. The Stage of Women’s Salary One of the main debates that have surrounded employment in the United States has been the issue of equal pay. While traditionally women have earned mean salaries compared to their male counterparts, WWII had a significant impact on women’s salaries. Women that replaced men who had quit jobs to serve in the military started earning higher salaries, even though their salaries was not similar to that of their male counterparts. The war had a significant impact on women and their male counterparts at large. According to Gildons and Ollivetti (2013), the National War Labor Board asked employers to voluntarily pay women an equal among of wages that they had been paying men in factories and industries. Trade and Labor unions were concerned about the future of men because they hoped that employment of women was a temporary affair that could be terminated with the end of the war. Nevertheless, a few employers decided to raise women’s salaries to fifty-three percent of that of men. Since women’s salaries were almost equal to that of their male counterparts as argued in Acemoglu and Autor (2014),...