Women 1950-75

Question 0

How were working women treated? (3 points)

Answer 0

• Resented by male colleagues
• Blamed for crime and unruly behaviour by children
• Said to be less committed than men

8/10 women were secretaries, factory workers or shop workers

Question 1

Describe the two main changes for women in this time period.

Answer 1

1. More able to get a job if they wished to

2. Wages increasing faster than prices - more spending money available

Question 2

How much did the percentage if women in work increase between 1951-71? Name two reasons for this increase.

Answer 2

It increased from 31% to 38% BECAUSE

1. Many employers liked employing women because they were cheaper
2. The collapse of the marriage bar stopping married women working

Question 3

What was the Family Allowance Act of 1945?

Answer 3

This Act meant that mothers received a payment for each child they had.

Question 4

What was the Abortion Act of 1967?

Answer 4

This Act meant that abortion were now legal.

Question 5

What was the Divorce Reform Act of 1969?

Answer 5

This Act made divorce easier. Basically, women didn’t have to prove adultery to get divorced.

Question 6

What was the Equal Pay Act of 1970?

Answer 6

This Act granted equal pay for men and women doing the same work.

Question 7

What was the Sex Discrimination Act of 1975?

Answer 7

This Act outlawed sexual discrimination in the workplace.

Question 8

What was the Domestic Violence Act of 1976?

Answer 8

This Act allowed married or cohabiting women to obtain a court order aimed at providing further violence and to exclude her violent partner from the home.

Question 9

Describe 4 aspects of women’s home life that had changed.

Answer 9

• Less time spent on housework allowed more time to socialise!
• Women felt torn between the expectation to be a good mother but to also pursue a career.
• Magazine and TV revolutionised how women thought. Moving from how they should behave as mothers or wives to celebrities and women in their own right.
• Technology changed the way people lived. Refrigerators reducing the need to shop as frequently and vacuums making cleaning easier.

Question 10

How did women feel about marriage and employment? (6 points)

Answer 10

• 35% working class & 21% of middle class wives felt they married too young
• Both groups said they were full of regrets for things they didn’t do
• The majority felt their marriages were more equal than their parents’
• Few women saw their main role in life as a wife and mother
• Most felt their education was totally geared towards men
• 62% didn’t know what their husband earned

Question 11

The Women’s Liberation Movement was particularly strong in the late 60’s. What were their 4 agreed demands?

Answer 11

1. Equal pay
2. Equal education and opportunity
3. 24 hour nurseries
4. Free contraception and abortion on demand

Question 12

When was the first birth control pill - approved by the NHS - dispensed?

Answer 12

1957

Question 13

By 1968 how many women were taking the contraceptive pill?

Answer 13

2 million

Question 14

Estimate how many illegal abortion took place each year in the early 1960’s?

Answer 14

200,000

Question 15

What did the matrimonial Act of 1970 recognise about a wife’s work?

Answer 15

It recognised that the wife’s work was valuable and built up the wealth of the couple which meant they got a share of the family assets. Before this many women were left in poverty after divorce.

Question 16

What did the divorce rate rise to in the early 1970’s?

Answer 16

The divorce rather rose by 3.5 times with over 100,000 divorces per year in the early 1970’s.