Describe the employment opportunities of women in Britain in 1914 at the outbreak of war.
Lucy Palmer
Question One: Assignment One
Describe the employment opportunities of women in Britain in 1914 at the outbreak of war.
(15marks)
At the beginning of the century educational and employment opportunities for women were poor. A Government census in 1911 revealed that over 11 million adult women did not have a paid job, and only 5 million did. One of the main reasons for this was that women were expected to marry and become housewives instead of having a job. Even those women that did have jobs were often expected to give up work as soon as they were married.
Women in work often had to put up with the worst working conditions and lowest pay; sometimes just two-thirds of a man’s or even less. Although it was not too difficult for women to get jobs, promotion opportunities were poor. One reason for this was that women were often not as well educated as men. Before 1876 education was not compulsory, and it was not free until 1880. In 1902 the school leaving age was raised to twelve, and staying at school after this meant winning a scholarship or paying fees. Sometimes parents would pay for a son to carry on but not a daughter, as it was assumed that a daughter would get married and be supported by her husband. Only 10 per cent of children attended school after the age of twelve and only 10 per cent of these children were girls. It was difficult for women to do much to change this situation as they had fewer rights than men and could not vote. There were also now laws to protect women against discrimination.
