What was the effect of the 1940s on the role of women in the workforce then and today? What was the effect of the 1940s on the role of women in the workforce then and today? Women in the 1940s were given vast amounts of empowerment by being able to take part in the workforce during World War II. After WWII, they were expected to ‘revert’ back to their stereotypical roles (e.g., teaching, stay-at-home mothers, nursing others). Although they were expected to do so some opposed the idea and continued to take part in the workforce with their new found empowerment. Women did a great job at showing others that they were more than just ‘wives’ and that they were capable of doing the most intense and energy-consuming jobs. Women truly changed the work …show more content…
Directly after WWII many men were employed, meaning that many women who were working were either fired or asked to quit but some still wanted to take part in the workforce. This is when we truly began to see ‘work at home’ businesses like Mary Kay and Tupperware. These part-time jobs consisted of women making direct sales while recruiting other women so they could move up levels in the business’ “pyramid” (i.e., Sales Director, Team Leader). This form of direct selling “boomed in the late 1940s and 1950s”, excerpt from the ‘Encyclopedia of Women in Today’s World, Volume 1’. Although these were only seen as part-time jobs, many just liked the idea that they were working and not just doing household chores like they were told to do. This lead to women having the confidence of owning and running their own businesses like ‘Mary Kay’ and ‘Estée Lauder’. Overall many women who were fired and forced to quit their jobs after the war found new ways to work outside and inside of their community during the 1950s and …show more content…
As in being allowing to have a say in topics without being silenced and being able to have confidence in themselves. Women in the 1940s created a strong pathway for future generations to