Effects of WW2 on Economy Flashcards

1
Q

What more than doubled 1941-45?

A

National wealth, income and industrial production

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2
Q

GNP in 1940 vs 1945?

A

1940: $100 billion
1945: 211 billion

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3
Q

How was US a global economic power?

A

Produced majority of worlds steel, electricity and oil

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4
Q

What was created in 1944 by the federal gov?

A
  • International Monetary Fund: aimed to stabilise national currencies by handing out loans
  • International Bank for Reconstruction and Development: lend money for post-war construction
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5
Q

How much did the war cost the US?

A

$304 billion

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6
Q

How did the US fund the war?

A
  • Raised $137 billion in tax revenue

- $185 billion in war bonds

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7
Q

How many bought war bonds and how much did this raise?

A
  • Several War Bond Drives were successful in encouraging Americans to buy war bonds
  • 85 million buy war bonds raising $185 billion by 1946
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8
Q

Unemployment stats 1933, 1940 and 1945

A

1933: 12.8 million unemployed (25% of workforce)
1940: 8 million
1945: 1 million (2% of workforce)

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9
Q

How many new jobs created by WW2? How much did average wages rise?

A
  • 17 million

- 30%

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10
Q

Women in armed forces

A
  • 100,000 in Women’s Army Corps alone

- 350,000 in armed forces altogether

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11
Q

Number of women in work during WW2

A
  • 6 million enter workforce for the first time
  • 18 million working in war effort by 1945
  • 600,000 black women joined the war effort in factories, navy yards etc- Black Rosies
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12
Q

Jobs women held during WW2

A

Some as secretaries, telephonists but increasingly in male-dominated industries: building aircraft, repairing tanks, manufacturing explosives, ammunition

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13
Q

Limited Impacts of WW2 on women

A
  • Over 200,000 permanently disabled, 37,000 dead (many from working in explosives factories)
  • Still expected to perform domestic tasks, look after family when they returned home (dual burden)
  • Men saw women in work as temporary- expected them to give up jobs and return to traditional female gender roles as soon as WW2 ended
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14
Q

What proportion of women wanted to continue working even after WW2?

A

90%

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15
Q

Role of Young People in American Red Cross

A
  • 20 million members became junior members of American Red Cross, produced toys, clothing, furniture, put on entertainment shows at military camps, hospitals
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16
Q

Role of young people in Civil Defence Organsiation

A
  • Of 10 million volunteers, vast majority were young people

- Watched for enemy planes, did coast watching e.g. watched for German U-boat activity on the East Coast (submarines)

17
Q

Previous Impact of Legislation on TUs

A
  • NIRA 1933: gave unions right of collective bargaining (TU can negotiate for better pay on behalf of all members) (made unconstitutional 1935)
  • Wagner Act 1935 (restored this power)
18
Q

1933-1945 considerable growth in TU membership

A
  • 1930: 3.4 million
  • 1940: 8.7 million
  • 1945: 14.3 million (35.5.% of workforce)
19
Q

Reasons for growth in TUs

A
  • Unionisation of semi-skilled and unskilled workers and their formation of COI (Congress of Industrial Organisation)
  • War Labor Board by FDR: policy where every employee at unionised workplace had to join a union
20
Q

Issues with TUs (United Mine Workers of America)

A
  • Leader of UMWA wanted to raise coal miner’s wages 1942, not allowed by War Labor Board= left the CIO
  • UMWA members (800,000) called out to strike 4 times in 1943 alone, despite no strikes agreements being accepted by most
21
Q

Migration to Urban/ Industrial Cities

A
  • 15 million Americans moved permanently due to WW2
  • Great Migration of BA continued from South but not just to North East, also to Pacific Coast due to war industries there e.g. aircraft production, shipbuilding
22
Q

How many BA move to LA ?

A

120,000

23
Q

Population increase of California during WW2?

A

2 million

24
Q

Migration to escape rural poverty

A
  • 50% of whites living in rural areas in poverty, 90% of blacks
  • New industries= new opportunities
25
Q

New Nuclear Industry

A
  • Most significant and innovative industry- important in US defence and in electricity
  • Manhattan Project: project to make first atomic bomb, cost $2 billion, constructed large industrial plants, employed more than 100,000
26
Q

Aircraft Industry

  • aircraft produced
  • workers employed
  • cost
A
  • Stimulated growth of war economy
  • 125,000 aircraft produced
  • employed 2 million workers
  • aircraft production= cost $45 billion
27
Q

B29 Boeing

A
  • Delivered atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki
  • hundreds of thousands employed on it
  • cost $3 billion alone
28
Q

Shipbuilding

A
  • New pre-fab merchant ships (Liberty Ships), reduced building time from months to days
  • Almost 6000 merchant ships built in WW2