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Many
men went to fight – women did their work. This had a
long-term effect upon women's lib, although any gains seemed to
evaporate straight after the war, when the men came back and many
women went back to the kitchen. However, many of the
leaders of women's lib in the 1860s had begun their working careers
during the war.
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There
was a huge growth in munitions/ aircraft industries – other
industries (eg house building) were put on hold
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There
was a huge emphasis on food production – Dig for Victory
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rationing
– notably of petrol
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Shortages
of workers – schedule of Protected Occupations prevented the call-up
of key workers to the armed services, and the Essential Works Order
(1941) allowed the government to conscript people to certain work.
Of course, after the war, all the men came home and this
created further employment disruption.
-
The
Government had to take control of the economy – eg who worked where,
trade, railways, shipping, banking etc.
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MASSIVE
government debts were accumulated, particularly to
America
(remember Lend-lease)
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Many
men (including COs) were sent to work in the mines
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Huge
losses of merchant shipping to submarines
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Destruction
of factories/machines – in 1945
Britain
LOST 12% of her productive capacity
-
Destruction
by bombing created a need for massive house building after the war.
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Recruitment
and training of workers was disrupted - there were long-term bad
effects on the quality of British workmanship and management.
-
There
were many scientific advances, which were to have a GREAT effect in
the years to come (eg the computer, mass-produced antibiotics, DDT,
jet engines)
-
Growth
in Trade Unions and strikes - workers did NOT willingly put up with
the appalling conditions, and rather used their indispensibility to
negotiate better conditions and wages.
-
The
government set up the Beveridge Committee which
brought in the Welfare State after the war.
It also adopted a new way of running the economy (called
Keynesian economics) which promised full employment (compare life
during the Depression before the war).
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The
Bretton Woods Conference (1944) set up the International Monetary Fund
to try to prevent another world economic depression.