Women at Work in the U.S.

By Rzalph

  • Pre-World War I (Before 1914)

    Common jobs:
    - Cooking
    - Cleaning
    - Taking care of children
    - Sewing and weaving
    - Gardening
    - Taking care of animals

  • World War I (1914-1918)

    Men went to war and women stepped in to fill the roles of the men.
    Many women had access to jobs in the public sphere for the first time and one million women joined the workforce. Popular Jobs included:
    - Transportation (driving cars, ambulances)
    - Working on the railroads (building trains)
    - Nursing
    - Working in factories (war ammunition + supplies)
    - The Women’s Land Army (farming)

    - Housework for other families

  • The 1920’s-1930’s

    The Women’s Bureau was established.
    This organization created standards for women’s working conditions such as the number of hours women could work in a week.

  • World War II (1939-1945)

    Women made up one third (⅓) of the labor force and women began entering male dominated fields such as engineering, math and the law.

  • The 1960’s

    The Equal Pay Act is passed.
    This act says that women and men must be paid equally for the same work. It is now illegal to pay women less because of their sex.

  • 1970’s-2000’s

    The Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) was passed.

    This act granted family members unpaid time off from work for childbirth, the adoption of a child, or to care for a sick family member. Women could not be fired for taking this time off.

  • Today

    Women make up over half (50.4%) of the workforce and women on average are still paid less than men for the same work. More women are graduating from universities compared to men.