The+role+and+status+of+Women+in+the+1930s

By: Katya
 * __Women's Role in the 1930s__**

 The Depression made a good change to the [|role] and [|status] of women in the 1930s. Women had to look for jobs and the [|Great Depression] had just begun, which affected women because it was harder to find jobs that paid well. Women had to work on poor working conditions but this made women more important. Women had to take care of their family and work at the same time. Women gained the right to vote which made women more powerful. The marriage and divorce rate dropped because of the [|Great Depression]. Women were responsible at home too because they had to take care of their family by working so they could get food, clothing a place to live in. Women had to find ways to save money since they got paid low wages. Women had to find multiple jobs to survive. Black women obtained jobs easier than their husbands as [|clerks] and servants, this increased women’s status and power at home. In the 1930s 11 million of the women were employed. Women faced social criticism because they were believed that they took men’s jobs away from them. In the 1930s women’s role and status was changed by the [|Great Depression] women were more powerful and had more importance.  Women gained the right to vote in the 1920s. This made women more powerful because their votes will now count for something important. In July, 1848 votes for women were proposed in the United States at the [|Seneca Falls Woman’s Rights]. This was the first American women’s right meeting. The convention was organized by [|Elizabeth Cady Stanton]and [|Lucretia Mott] was involved in the early woman’s movement. Also, she was an American social activist. Lucretia Mott was a social reformer, abolitionist, and American Quaker minister. It was that on June 4, 1919 the United States Senate endorsed the amendment. The first states to pass the law were Illinois, Wisconsin and Michigan.  In the 1930s women got jobs more easily than men would. 11 million of all the women were employed since men couldn’t find jobs. It was the women who had the responsibility to work so their family could survive. “Three out of 10 women were in domestic and personal service.” (“Working Women in the 1930s”) In the 1930s, women entered the work force. This meant that women were hired, but at a reduced wage because they were women. Women worked as nurses, teachers or as service workers. “Women constituted 7 percent of all workers in the automobile industry and 25 percent of all workers in the electrical industry.” (“Working Women in the 1930s”)  A problem for women was that they had to work in poor working conditions. Women worked long hours for low wages. “More than half of the employed women worked for more than fifty hours a week.”(“Working Women in the 1930s”) The [|Great Depression] made the women’s wages drop even lower. Women had to work hard to pay for the necessities their family needed like food and clothing. Unemployed women worked for more than fifty hours a week, since these women didn’t have one job, they had to work in different jobs to make money for the things that they needed. “Women’s annual pay in 1937 was $525.” (“Working Women in the 1930s”) The industries that hired women at reduced wages were canning, meat packaging, [|textiles] and candy. Industries paid women low wages for this jobs because they were simple to do, and didn’t require that much work. The companies and government made it harder for married women to get jobs that paid high wages. “Both private companies and the government dismissed large numbers of married women and made it difficult for married women to get high-paying professional or [|clerical] jobs” (“Working Women in the 1930s”) In the 1930s women that worked faced social criticism because they were believed that they took jobs away from men; this was because women took the jobs that most men would take because of the low wages that they paid.  For women that couldn’t find jobs there was a job campaign to provide jobs for them. The Members of the Associated Women’s Committee for Women’s [|unemployment] relief had a meeting at the Chamber of Commerce in February 1932. To discuss their plans to help unemployed women of the city trying to find jobs at this time because it was really hard. The part-time [|campaign] was to give one to two hours of work to women that were unemployed from women that were employed. So, that every woman can have a job for at least one to two hours and for that they could pay for the things that their family needed. Some of the things mentioned made for this work included sewing at home, general [|mending], cleaning silverware or brass, serving at dinners, shopping, taking care of children, part-time practical nursing, reading aloud, typing and relining shelves and drawers. The other part of the program was created to provide a fund to create jobs that women needed in order for them to provide food and the necessities of life that they and their family need.  The [|Great Depression] affected women’s role in their family. Women had to be [|budget] conscious and they had to think smart about food. This meant that they had to buy day-old bread, cheaper meat, because these types of food were much cheaper. The prices of food were low so it helped women who were shopping carefully, milk cost ten cents a quart; a loaf of bread was seven cents; a pound of butter cost twenty-three cents; and two pounds of hamburger cost twenty-five cents. Also, women would sew blankets into sweaters and coats. Families moved down to smaller apartments because women couldn’t afford to pay for more and since women were the only ones working they had to pay for rent, food and clothing. Men had to stay home to take care of the children since women had to work, and men had to do the rest of the things like cooking and cleaning so, men were responsible at home. Many couples had to delay marriage because it was very expensive to pay the legal fees. “The marriage rate was 10.14 per 1,000 in 1929 but dropped to 7.87 per 1,000 in 1932.” (Bondi) Also, the divorce rate dropped because it was too expensive. “Between 1930 and 1935 there were fewer divorces than would have occurred if the divorce rates of the 1920s had continued.” (Bondi) It was easier for black women to obtain work than their husbands, working as servants, clerks and textiles workers and other occupations. This increased women’s status and power in the home. “In 1935, 25 percent of all black women workers were on relief, and two-fifths of these were heads of households.” (Bondi) Married women worked outside home to help support their families.  In the 1930s the [|Great Depression] made a huge impact on women, it made a good change in women’s role and status. Women gained the right to vote. Women had to find time to work and be at home with their family at the same time. Women were responsible on running households. The marriage and divorce rate dropped because of the [|Great Depression]. Women’s status changed when women could obtain jobs easier than their husbands who didn’t accept jobs with low wages. Women status was changed when married women had to work outside their home to help them support their families. But women had to work on poor working conditions because the job that they took wasn’t a good wage, didn’t pay that well. Black women got accepted to jobs easier than men would because they got jobs that didn’t have a good wage. Women’s role took on a great significance during the 1930s.

**__Works Consulted__ **   "//Working Women in the 1930s//." //DISCovering U.S. History//. Gale Research, 1997. Reproduced in History Resource Center. Farmington Hills, MI: Gale. [|http://galenet.galegroup.com/servlet/HistRC/]
 * Source A: **

-This book was about the working women in the Great Depression. It gives you facts and information about the conditions on which women worked. Source B: ** Deborah G. Felder, __A Century of Women__. N.J: Carol Publishing Group,1999 <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 115%; FONT-FAMILY: 'Century Gothic','sans-serif'">-This database helped a lot it gave me facts and important stuff on the Great Depression and women. Source C: ** <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Century Gothic','sans-serif'"> <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Century Gothic','sans-serif'">“Job Campaign to Aid Women” Feb 4, 1932. __ProQuest Historical New York Times.__ Greenwich High School Media Center, Greenwich, CT. 1 April 2008 <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 115%; FONT-FAMILY: 'Century Gothic','sans-serif'"> [|http://hn.bigchalk.com/hnweb/hn/do/document?set=mylist&start=1&inmylist=true&subtopicid=87126&lastset=topic&rendition=x-article-image&urn=urn%3Aproquest%3AUS%3BPQDOC%3BHNP%3BPQD%3BHNP%3BPROD%3Bx-article-image%3B379742231&mylisturn=urn%3Aproquest%3AUS%3BPQDOC%3BHNP%3BPQD%3BHNP%3BPROD%3Bx-citation%3B379742231] <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 115%; FONT-FAMILY: 'Century Gothic','sans-serif'">-This article was about a campaign that women were doing so that they could get jobs. This helped because it tells you what jobs the women got and the struggles they went through. <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 115%; FONT-FAMILY: 'Century Gothic','sans-serif'"> **<span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 115%; FONT-FAMILY: 'Century Gothic','sans-serif'"> Source D: ** <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 115%; FONT-FAMILY: 'Century Gothic','sans-serif'">Bondi, Victor. __American Decades 1930-1939__. Detroit: Gale Research, 1995 <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 115%; FONT-FAMILY: 'Century Gothic','sans-serif'">-This book gives you information on all of the things that women had to suffer. For example jobs, family, and money. Also, it has facts about the Great Depression. Source E: ** <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; COLOR: windowtext; LINE-HEIGHT: 115%; FONT-FAMILY: 'Century Gothic','sans-serif'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial">“The Great Depression”(2000) <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 115%; FONT-FAMILY: 'Century Gothic','sans-serif'">EyeWitness to History  <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; COLOR: windowtext; LINE-HEIGHT: 115%; FONT-FAMILY: 'Century Gothic','sans-serif'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial">, [|www.] [|**eyewitness**] [|tohistory.com/snprelief1.htm] <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; COLOR: windowtext; LINE-HEIGHT: 115%; FONT-FAMILY: 'Century Gothic','sans-serif'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial"> -This website tells you about women and their jobs. Also, it tells you about marriage and divorce in the 1930s. **<span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; COLOR: windowtext; LINE-HEIGHT: 115%; FONT-FAMILY: 'Century Gothic','sans-serif'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial"> Source F: ** <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; COLOR: windowtext; LINE-HEIGHT: 115%; FONT-FAMILY: 'Century Gothic','sans-serif'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial">“The Great Depression” [|http://ualr.edu/arwomen/depression.htm</span]> <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; COLOR: windowtext; LINE-HEIGHT: 115%; FONT-FAMILY: 'Century Gothic','sans-serif'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial">-This website tells you about women, and all the struggles they had to go through. **<span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; COLOR: windowtext; LINE-HEIGHT: 115%; FONT-FAMILY: 'Century Gothic','sans-serif'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial"> Source G: ** <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; COLOR: windowtext; LINE-HEIGHT: 115%; FONT-FAMILY: 'Century Gothic','sans-serif'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial">“Women in the Great Depression” [|www.library.csi.cuny.edu/dept/history/lavender/286/14.htm]
 * <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 115%; FONT-FAMILY: 'Century Gothic','sans-serif'">
 * <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Century Gothic','sans-serif'">
 * <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 115%; FONT-FAMILY: 'Century Gothic','sans-serif'">

<span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; COLOR: windowtext; LINE-HEIGHT: 115%; FONT-FAMILY: 'Century Gothic','sans-serif'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial">-This website tells you about women and the workforce.

<span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; COLOR: windowtext; LINE-HEIGHT: 115%; FONT-FAMILY: 'Century Gothic','sans-serif'; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial"> <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 115%; FONT-FAMILY: 'Century Gothic','sans-serif'"> <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 115%; FONT-FAMILY: 'Century Gothic','sans-serif'"> <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 115%; FONT-FAMILY: 'Century Gothic','sans-serif'"> <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 115%; FONT-FAMILY: 'Century Gothic','sans-serif'"> <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 115%; FONT-FAMILY: 'Century Gothic','sans-serif'"> <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 115%; FONT-FAMILY: 'Century Gothic','sans-serif'"> <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 115%; FONT-FAMILY: 'Century Gothic','sans-serif'">

<span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 200%; FONT-FAMILY: 'Century Gothic','sans-serif'"> <span style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 200%; FONT-FAMILY: 'Century Gothic','sans-serif'">