Theme 3 b 1 - The right to vote and political advancement, 1918-79 Flashcards
When did women get the right to vote at the age of 30?
1918
When did women get the right to vote at the age of 21?
1928 - on equal par with men
What did women still fail to have in the government and what did political parties tend to use them for?
Failed to gain a significant politcal voice- there were comparitively few women MPs.
Used them in subordinate capacities such as delivering leaflets & organising functions.
Political and economic changes, 1918-29
In the decade after WW1- how were the lives of women shaped by political and economic change?
Many became accustomed to new political rights & employment opportunites.
They were able to enjoy leisure time & consumerism.
Political and economic changes, 1918-29
What was wrong with the workplace for women?
Work opportunities- still highly gendered.
Experience in the workplace- one of low wages, low-skilled jobs & long hours.
Franchise
In March 1918- who did the Representation of the People Act enfrachise?
Women over 30- if they were a member or married to a member of the local government register, a graduate voting in a university election or a property owner.
This meant only educated and ‘respectable’ women were enfranchised.
Franchise
How much of the electorate did women comprise of?
43% (8.4 million voters) in the December election that year.
Franchise
In the same act- when were men enfranchised?
What would have happened if women were granted the same rights?
21.
Women- would have made up the majority of the electorate due to the high losses of men during the war.
Franchise
When did Britains working class women recieve the vote?
What act was this under?
1928- when all women rate payers were enfranchised on the same terms as men under the Representation of the People Act (1928)
Employment opportunities
WW1- opened up women to job opportunities. What did thousands of women work as?
Auxiliaries, drivers, telephonists, signallers and nurses on the western front.
Employment opportunities
In 1914- how many women were employed in the metals & chemicals industries?
How did this change by 1918?
200,000
Over 1 million women in these two fields
Where was Britains main Cordite factory?
Gretna
How many women worked at Gretna to create explosives?
11,000 women
What did the gov ‘dilution’ agreement with trade unions mean in 1914?
Meant that skilled workers who went to fight in France could be replaced by semi-skilled labour. This included women workers on two main conditions.
What rules were made with the ‘dilution’ agreement of 1914?
- Employments lasted only as long as the war did.
- The new workers would not be able to profit from the war and would not be paid higher wages than the men whose jobs they were filling.
Why did the number of employed women reduce after the war?
The ‘dilution’ agreement. They were only employed as long at the war lasted.
How many women were put out of work after WW2?
5.7 million.
Due to the dilution agreement
What three industries provided the most employment for working-class women?
Maid
Cook
Cleaner
Very unpopular and undesirable jobs that they wished they could leave.
In 1918 how many women were ‘in-service’ (working)?
1.25 million
Why was there such limited opportunities for women to work?
Prejudice, lack of education and the prevailing ideas about what was ‘women’s work’
What was the biggest growth area for female employment in the 1920s?
Clerical work (clerks or typists)
How many women were employed as typists or clerks by 1921?
1 million
Another 300,000 within the next ten years.
What new industry opened up for women after the war?
Sweat labour in light manufacturing.
This was however low paid and unemployment benefits were dismal.
What proportion of working-class women did work at home?
2/3
What work is described by the term ‘piece work’?
Baking, sewing, brewing as well as household jobs and caring for children.
What class of women were part of the Suffrage campaign?
Educated middle-class women. - Got ROPA 1918. - Wanting franchise to be extended to women with property.
What was the result of the 1919 Sex Disqualification Act?
Improved opportunities for women advancement as they were now allowed to go to university.
Also helped the application of women for work and showed that male attitudes were starting to change.
Year - Sex disqualification act
1919