Women's Changing Roles

In World War II the changing role for women on the services and on the home front expanded greatly. Women were no longer kept to nursing, medical and voluntary roles, and they were able to join a women’s arm of each of the services. On the home front the number of women employed grew quickly as men left jobs to go to war, and many new occupations suddenly opened to women. The nature of the war and the threat to Australia meant that there was greater unity on the home front. There were, however, tensions associated with women’s roles and for many people old outlooks and values were hard to change.
Life before the war for women was simple and repetitive. Their job was too nurture, cook, clean and be a good wife. Their destiny was to get married and have children, and care for her husband and children. Women before war were seen as incapable of having any other sort of life, women that did try and pursue a different life were look upon as immoral, women were expected to populate. Only women that were unmarried worked. A working married woman was considered as taking a man’s job and seen as desperate. Women worked in nursing, domestic services, teaching and other nurturing roles.
While men were at war fighting for their country women eventually had to work in their jobs at home because the shortage of men meant shortage of products and services. Women began to work in munitions factories, factories that built ships and aeroplanes, Government, business offices, banks, and transport. In 1941 the Government had decided that they were going to let women enlist, there were three services that were created so women could take on roles men occupied, they were the Women’s Auxiliary Australian Air Force, The Australian Women’s Army Service and The Women’s Royal Australian Naval Service in these services women were employed as electricians, fitters, Aircraft mechanics, clerical assistants, caterers, signallers, drivers, interpreters and enemy code breakers. Also 13 000 women...