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Factory Jobs Prior to WWII
During decades prior to World War II, factories had adapted job specification, resulting in difficult jobs being broken down into smaller more manageable tasks. This production modification increased output and increased the amount of factory and shipping yard jobs for American men.
A Woman’s Place Before WWII
During the World War II era, women were viewed as the fairer sex and were primarily concerned with homemaking duties, while their husbands worked. When America entered WWII, men were drafted into the Military which caused a worker shortage.
Working Women, a Change in Safety Policy
To fill the vacant positions, women were asked to enter the workforce. Often the women who stepped into the open positions did not know what the job required or how to perform it safely. Initially many women suffered injuries from the machinery due to their hair or clothing getting caught in spinning parts. This resulted in mandatory uniform requirements and other safety protocols, which many women rejected. Women’s initial resistance to the adherence of safety guidelines was due to beauty concerns which led to large scale changes and adaptations of workplace practices that further increased workplace safety and efficiency. These changes were not a direct result of their resistance but rather the enormous effort corporations, policy makers, and media producers made to establish changes in beauty standards.
Immigration Regulations Limited the Available Workforce
Leading up to World War Two the United States had adopted the National Origin Act of 1929, which was a strict immigration policy that significantly reduced the number of immigrant workers within America (Fisk). After the bombing of Pearl Harbor, President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed Executive Order 9066 which forced all people within America who were of Japanese ancestry into concentration camps. Many of these Japanese Americans worked agriculture or factory jobs.
When the United States officially entered WWII, more than 16 million American men were enlisted or drafted into the armed forces. This rapid shift from civilian to military population caused a drastic worker shortage. As a result, the U.S. Government recruited American women to fill factory and shipping yard jobs and established the Bracero Program with Mexico to bring in workers to fill agriculture jobs (War Manpower Commission). Many women who entered the workforce during WWII had never held a job prior. They lacked knowledge of the work they were hired to perform and were often confused in their new roles (War at Home).
Increases in Women Working
In 1941 women made up 24 percent of the American workforce, mostly holding teaching, nursing, domestic, or sky girl positions. Very few women with young children worked, especially if their husbands made good wages. It was most common for low-income and minority women to work in middle and upper-class white households as housekeepers and servants.
The number of women workers shifted dramatically, and in the year 1945 more than 36 percent of the workforce were women, who held positions in jobs that were previously staffed by men (Aldrich). Women of all socioeconomic backgrounds and ethnicities began working to contribute to the War effort.
Transitioning into these laborer positions was not easy for women. The jobs were physically taxing and presented safety risks that were magnified by women’s current fashions. Prior to this period, most women were accustomed to wearing their hair down. They were expected to wear skirts, dresses, jewelry, and fashionable shoes. Women held strong beliefs about their appearance and femininity, which was especially true in middle and upper-class women (Boris).
Women’s Fashion and Injuries
Women who came from middle and upper-class families were less likely to want to work industrial jobs, and their husbands wanted them working even less (Women Want to Get it Over). However, they felt obligated to contribute to the War effort to help keep America safe. This attitude was often projected into the workplace and many women were indifferent to the idea of needing to adjust their lifestyle and appearance for their safety.
Initially, accidents were common when women first entered the workplace. Women’s injuries were often related to their hair getting caught in machinery which caused it to be ripped out of their heads. Other accidents that were common for women involved clothing (such as skirts and sweaters) getting caught in machinery, causing bodily injury (Patnode). Additionally, some believed that men who were not drafted and still in the workforce were more likely to be injured by women carelessly not taking safety guidelines and dress requirements seriously (Boris). Safety measures were established in factories and shipping yards to help reduce injuries and distractions.
Some requirements were to wear pants, ban jewelry, and for women to completely cover their hair. Wearing pants was unheard of for women prior to this period. The safety guidelines were interpreted as offensive to many well-to-do women, which resulted in a widespread rejection of the guidelines and a refusal to fully adhere to the new rules (Patnode).
Wardrobe Rebellion
Well-off women perceived the guidelines to not protect their safety, but to take away their femininity. They believed that housewives worried about their husbands not being able to control their impulses on the job. It was believed that the homemakers wanted the female workers to dress like men to reduce their sexual appeal (Boris). This belief caused widespread misinformation about safety and caused outright rebellion.
Politics and Hollywood Changed Fashion to Appeal to Work Safety
To counterbalance the vanity concerns, policy makers, print media, and movie producers began education campaigns of what proper work clothes looked like. They put a glamorous spin on the style and began featuring beautiful women dressed properly for the war effort. Other educational campaigns included distribution of pamphlets of what women workers needed to be successful and safe on the job (Woman Power). By the time World War II ended, America had a significantly lower factory accident rate (Aldrich), and women’s fashion had changed forever.
Pants Became A Woman’s Wardrobe Staple
As the large-scale information and fashion campaigns continued more women adapted to the dress guidelines. Many prominent fashion catalogs began selling patterns or premade turbans and caps for women to cover their hair (Patnode). Women began to accept pants as part of their everyday wardrobe, and began wearing them outside of work (Marcellus). As the war lingered on, companies expanded their recruiting strategies to get more women into the War Effort.
Many Women Left the Workforce After the War
These recruitment strategies included onsite childcare for working mothers and time limits to the number of hours women could work. The War effort was one of the most productive periods in U.S. manufacturing history (Fisk). After the War ended, many women left the workforce, but the experience changed the stereotype of what women could achieve and what they ought to look like. The experience left a lasting effect on workplace standards, employee safety, and employer-based benefits.
Works Cited & More Resources
Aldrich, M. History of workplace safety in the United States, 1880-1970. EH.net Encyclopedia, edited by Robert Whaples. August 14, 2001. http://eh.net/encyclopedia/history-of-workplace-safety-in-the-united-states-1880-1970/
Boris, E. (2006). Desirable Dress: Rosie’s, Sky Girls, and the Politics of Appearance. International Labor and Working-Class History, (69), 123-142. Retrieved November 21, 2020, from http://www.jstor.org/stable/27673025
Fisk, D. American Labor in the 20th Century. (2003). Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Marcellus, J. (2005). Bo’s’n’s Whistle: Representing “Rosie the Riveter” on the Job. American Journalism, 22(2), 83–108.
Patnode, S. R. (2012). “Keep it Under Your Hat”: Safety Campaigns and Fashion in the World War II Factory. Journal of American Culture, 35(3), 231–243.
“The War at Home.” Allies against the Axis, Lerner Publishing Group, 1993, p. 37.
War Manpower Commission. United States Employment Service. Flyer. 1942. https://www.archives.gov/education/lessons/wwii-women.html
Woman Power. Labor Mobilization and Utilization. American Institute of Public Opinion. https://www.archives.gov/education/lessons/wwii-women.html
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