Women in World War II took on a variety of roles. Some women embraced traditional positions as caretakers and homemakers. Others explored new opportunities, from which women had been previously excluded.
Nearly 19 million American women held jobs during World War II, out of which around 6 million entered the labor force as new female workers.
Women worked in the war industries, in factories, and on farms. They drove trucks, provided logistic support for soldiers, and entered professional areas of work that were previously the domain of men. They enlisted as nurses serving on the front lines, and there was a great increase in the number of women serving for the military. Women also joined the federal government and served in community organizations in massive numbers.
Although many women took on male dominated trades during World War II, they were expected to return to housework after men returned from the war.
The overall percentage of women working fell from 36 percent to 28 percent in 1947.
Around 350,000 American women served in the U.S. military during World War II.
The wartime and postwar economic prosperity, as well as the return of many female workers to the domestic sphere, resulted in the dramatic increase of birth rates in the postwar period.
Key Terms
Rosie the Riveter: A cultural icon of the United States representing the American women who worked in factories and shipyards during World War II, many of whom produced munitions and war supplies.
United Service Organizations: A nonprofit organization that provides programs, services, and live entertainment to U.S. soldiers and their families. Since 1941, it has worked in partnership with the Department of Defense, relying heavily on private contributions and on funds, goods, and services from various corporate and individual donors.
baby boom: Any period marked by a greatly increased fertility rate. This demographic phenomenon is usually ascribed within certain geographical bounds. In the United States, the post-World War II period was marked by this phenomenon.
Changing Roles
Women in World War II took on a variety of roles. Some women embraced the traditional positions of caretakers and homemakers. Others explored new opportunities, from which women had been previously excluded. The global conflict on an unprecedented scale and the absolute urgency of mobilizing the entire population made the expansion of the role of women inevitable. In the United States, the hard skilled labor of women was symbolized by the concept of Rosie the Riveter, a female factory laborer performing what was previously considered men’s work.
Labor
Nearly 19 million American women held jobs during World War II, out of which around 6 million entered the labor force as new female workers. Government campaigns targeting women were addressed mostly to housewives, likely because already-employed women would move to the higher-paid “essential” jobs on their own, or perhaps because it was assumed that most potential new workers were housewives. One government advertisement asked women: “Can you use an electric mixer? If so, you can learn to operate a drill.” Propaganda was also directed at men, many of whom were unwilling to support women in the labor force and particularly in industrial jobs. Women worked in the war industries, building ships, aircraft, vehicles, and weaponry. They also worked in factories and on farms, drove trucks, provided logistic support for soldiers, and entered professional areas of work that were previously the domain of men. They enlisted as nurses serving on the front lines, and there was a great increase in the number of women serving for the military. Women  also joined the federal government in massive numbers. Nearly a million so-called “government girls” were recruited for war work. In addition, women volunteers aided the war effort by planting victory gardens, canning produce, selling war bonds, donating blood, salvaging needed commodities, and sending care packages.
Although many women took on male-dominated trades during World War II, they were expected to return to housework once men returned from the war. In 1944, when victory seemed assured for the United States, government-sponsored propaganda changed by urging women to return to working in the home. Later, many women assumed traditional female-dominated jobs such as clerical or administration positions, despite women’s reluctance to reenter the lower-paying fields. At the end of the war, most of the munitions-making jobs ended. Many factories were closed; others were retooled for civilian production. In some jobs, women were replaced by returning veterans. However the number of women at work in 1946 was 87 percent of the number in 1944, leaving 13 percent who had lost or quit their jobs. The overall percentage of women working fell from 36 percent to 28 percent in 1947.
