The Evolution of Men’s and Women’s Employment (1914-1918)
The wartime economy changed the basic composition and dynamics of labor in Germany. Able-bodied men were recruited into military service during the war, while more and more women stepped in to take up the slack in industrial production. Although there was resistance to women abandoning their roles as wives and mothers, the growing prominence of women in the workforce was driven by material hardship.
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I. Employment of Adult Workers according to Branch of Industry, 1914-1918 (March 1914 = 100) Branch of Industry | Sept. 1914 | March 1915 | Sept. 1915 | March 1916 | Sept. 1916 | March 1917 | Sept. 1917 | March 1918 | Sept. 1918 | Natural Stone, Gravel, Sand and Concrete | 67.2 | 67.4 | 67.0 | 74.6 | 83.6 | 82.8 | 89.7 | 87.0 | 77.3 | Metal Industry | 58.3 | 117.4 | 289.5 | 492.4 | 596.7 | 745.5 | 783.5 | 846.7 | 777.0 | Machine Building | 83.2 | 309.8 | 572.7 | 1414.8 | 2316.8 | 3381.7 | 3308.7 | 3520.4 | 3637.9 | Electrical Industry | 57.1 | 102.3 | 245.4 | 299.7 | 665.5 | 856.4 | 972.2 | 813.8 | 691.4 | Chemicals | 84.9 | 92.7 | 112.3 | 171.8 | 209.6 | 31.4 | 392.2 | 436.2 | 467.7 | Textiles | 89.0 | 108.1 | 85.1 | 66.9 | 55.8 | 66.9 | 68.5 | 62.6 | 59.9 | Paper | 53.8 | 78.9 | 90.6 | 101.3 | 132.5 | 136.7 | 131.1 | 149.8 | 159.4 | Leather and Rubber | 67.7 | 57.3 | 61.8 | 57.8 | 55.8 | 89.1 | 112.3 | 96.8 | 96.6 | Wood and Woodcarving | 24.6 | 89.9 | 110.8 | 148.5 | 123.9 | 109.5 | 112.2 | 115.7 | 124.9 | Gastronomy/ Groceries | 139.7 | 133.2 | 166.9 | 155.7 | 162.5 | 159.0 | 153.5 | 146.5 | 161.0 | Clothing | 66.3 | 74.7 | 95.2 | 83.4 | 72.5 | 58.1 | 51.6 | 55.5 | 54.3 | Printing | 62.7 | 82.5 | 83.2 | 84.9 | 86.1 | 82.1 | 87.1 | 90.1 | 96.5 | II. Index of Employment in Germany, 1916-1918 Health insurance members subject to obligatory insurance minus those who are disabled or unfit for work (June 1, 1914 = 100) Date | Women | Men | Combined | June 1, 1914 | 100.0 | 100.0 | 100.0 | December 1, 1916 | 108.1 | 60.5 | 77.3 | January 1, 1917 | 107.5 | 60.1 | 76.9 | April 1, 1917 | 109.9 | 60.1 | 77.7 | July 1, 1917 | 115.1 | 61.1 | 80.2 | October 1, 1917 | 116.6 | 60.9 | 80.7 | December 1, 1917 | 118.5 | 61.3 | 81.7 | January 1, 1918 | 116.5 | 60.4 | 80.4 | April 1, 1918 | 115.2 | 60.3 | 79.8 | July 1, 1918 | 116.7 | 60.8 | 80.8 | October 1, 1918 | 116.0 | 60.2 | 80.1 | December 1, 1918 | 108.7 | 59.3 | 76.8 | Source: Stefan Bajohr, Die Hälfte der Fabrik. Geschichte der Frauenarbeit in Deutschland 1914-1945 [Half of the Factory: The History of Women’s Employment in Germany, 1914-1945]. Marburg: Verlag Arbeiterbewegung und Gesellschaftswissenschaft, 1979, pp. 119, 125. Reprinted in Rüdiger vom Bruch and Björn Hofmeister, eds., Kaiserreich und Erster Weltkrieg 1871-1918 [Wilhelmine Germany and the First World War, 1871-1918]. Deutsche Geschichte in Quellen und Darstellung, edited by Rainer A. Müller, vol. 8. Stuttgart: P. Reclam, 2000, pp. 419-22. Translation: Jeffrey Verhey |