In Denysse Baillargeons article, she examines the impact of the Great Depression (1929-1939) on 30 working class women in Montreal and shows that these women were accustomed to hardships.
Even before the Great Depression, these women lived in poverty. Twenty-one of them had to leave school at age 14 or before in order to work. School was supposed to prepare them for family life, but most admitted they didn't receive adequate knowledge to be a housewife which was their primary role.
All of them were married before 1934 and living in Montreal which was the hardest hit during the economic crisis, reaching a 60% unemployment rate.
Their husbands, who's role was breadwinner of the house, barely made the poverty line wage of 20.18$ in 1929 to cover the basics. Five of the men made 25$, but half of them made less than 20$ and some even less than 10$ before the Great Depression.
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Another four worked a shorter week, three had their wage cut up to 20% and seven would have no steady job for 3 years.
So the women had to compensate for the losses. In addition to housework and taking care of children, 18 women worked for pay in order to survive. Most worked inside the home on by selling their sewing or laundry service or selling pastries and various other projects that earned around 3$ to 10$ a week.
This forced the families to rely on welfare that covered half of the basic needs of a family of five. Half of the families stayed on welfare for a prolonged period.
Further, while before the Depression, the women could make preserves, jams and pickles, their finances no longer allowed buying the raw ingredients. They even had to revert to buying damaged or slightly rotten food so they would not starve. Since food was expensive, families did not receive adequate