11 Economic Policy In Nazi Germany

Question 1

But

Answer 1

• it was difficult to export, as world trade had collapsed following the Great Depression
• Germany was short of essential raw materials
• Germany was dependant upon foreign money, which had become scarce after wallstreet crash

Question 2

Action 1

Answer 2

Banning of trade unions
Hitler wanted to ban trade unions because:
- the Weimar economy had been weakened by industrial unrest I.e. Shutdowns/strikes
- the Nazis disliked any organisation that threatened the unity of the people and/or his position of power
- Nazis were now funded by big business
- Hitler wanted a complaint workforce

• therefore on the 2nd of May 1933 trade unions were banned and strikes declared illegal
• German workers lost their basic rights to negotiate working conditions and wages
• the labour charter (January 1934) encouraged economic co-operation between employees and employers
• German workers came under the protection of the German Labour front (DAF) established on 6 May 1933 and led by Robert Ley it aimed to create Harmony in the workplace
• but in reality workers could not leave their jobs without government permission
• only government controlled labour exchanges could arrange new jobs
• workers found themselves working longer hours as restrictions on working hours were lifted
• by 1939 some worked 60 to 72 hours per week

Workers did benefit

• by having a job
• the Nazis provided over 60,000 new homes for workers
• from the decision of the nazi government to set prices and fix rents
• from the strength through joy (KDF-November 1933) it:
• offered workers cheaper holidays as well as visits to the theatre, hikes in the countryside and a range of sporting activities
• offered them an opportunity to purchase their own cars the Volkswagen (peoples car) they paid 5 marks a week until 750 marks were paid but no one received a car before 1939

Question 3

Action 2

Answer 3

Policies to reduce unemployment

1. National labour service (RAD)
   - you do men aged 18-25 carried out a series of public work schemes
   - thus included the building of new schools, hospitals and auto Bahns, alongside agricultural work such as planting trees
   - they lived in camps and wore army-like uniforms in return for their hard work the young men received free meals and pocket money instead of wages

2 conscription

• conscription was introduced in 1935 providing jobs in the army
• the army grew from having 100,000 in 1933 to 1.4 million by 1939

3 rearmament

• created thousands of jobs in the army and the armament factories
• new factories were set up to create crsatz (substitute) products e.g oil from coil

4 removal of women and Jews

• women were encouraged to give up their jobs and stay at home
• Jews were sacked from their job. Along with women they were not recorded on the unemployment register
• jobs vacated by women and Jews could then be taken by German men

Question 4

Action 3

Answer 4

Nazi rent and price controls

• the Nazis controlled prices, rents and wages in order to revert inflation
• the Reich food estate controlled agricultural prices and imposed price freezes in shops
• receiving fixed prices for their products helped farmers
• tightly controlled wages and the amount of consumer goods available to spend wages on = people has less to actually spend their money on
• although small business men suffered (by 1939 almost 200,000 small shops had gone out of business) most families benefitted from controls on prices and rent

Question 5

Action 4

Answer 5

The new plan 1934
- Hitler appointed Dr Schacht as president of the reichsbank and later as minister of economics the aim of the plan was (i)to boost the economy and (ii) create new jobs = STABILITY
- Schacht’s New plan (1934) worked in four main ways
- imports were limited as well as carefully controlled:
Trade agreements were made with countries that would supply Germany with vital raw materials in term for German industrial goods, creating a barter-like system

Question 6

Key economic political aims

Answer 6

Hitler wanted to:

• reduce unemployment from six million & keep his election promises (bread and work)
• build up the German armaments industry to rearm and enlarge German forces, this would help make Germany a great power again
• to make Germany economically self-sufficient (autarky) so that the economy could support a future war without having to rely on imports