From the book 'Heroic Australian Women' written by Susanna De Vries.
"All across Australia strong-minded young women left the kitchen or the drawing room and volunteered to serve in Europe as ambulance drivers, nurses, nursing aids, cooks or Red Cross workers. They also took took on jobs within Australia that were previously reserved for men. 'Cowgirls' or land girls worked on the land, dipping sheep and helping on farms in thousands of other ways; women played an important role, moved into offices, became telephonists and secretaries (once male occupations) journalists, even porters." (Vries, 2004.)
While the emotional and physical effects of World War One are well documented from the point of view of the soldiers, little is said of the effects on the women they left behind. News from the front lines travelled slowly; as they did not have the technology we do today. It could take up to two months for letters to reach home, and more often than not the letters were lost in the mail, destined never to arrive. Sometimes the only communication received from the front lines was a telegram notifying the family of a soldier’s death. Because of this, the women of Australia who had said goodbye to a husband, son, Father or brother, were left in a constant state of worry and anxiety. To combat this many women did whatever they could to contribute to the war effort.
But it wasn’t all smooth sailing. In the beginning women wanting to work were turned down as Unions did not want to allow women to work in previously male areas, for fear it would upset the balance of society. Despite this, a number of determined women took up roles left vacant by men who had enlisted. The amount of women filling positions such as typists and bookkeepers rose, and they began to enter sectors such as insurance and banking.
But it wasn’t all smooth sailing. In the beginning women wanting to work were turned down as Unions did not want to allow women to work in previously male areas, for fear it would upset the balance of society. Despite this, a number of determined women took up roles left vacant by men who had enlisted. The amount of women filling positions such as typists and bookkeepers rose, and they began to enter sectors such as insurance and banking.
From the book, 'In The Half Light' By David Gleason.
“We began hearing a lot about 'the war effort' and people stopped saying the war would be over in six months, or even a year. Whenever I came home from school, the house was full of women clicking knitting needles and manipulating dark wool, and making huge quantities of socks, vests, mittens and mufflers, as well as sewing pyjamas and shirts.”
(Gleason, 1988)
Because so many women wanted to help out within society, there were more job applicants than jobs. As a result of this, many women could not find employment and instead turned their attention to charities and fundraising. In 1914 the Australian branch of ‘The Red Cross’ was started and grew rapidly, with women from all over the country volunteering. The main task of women who joined The Red Cross was to assemble packages to be sent to the soldiers overseas, run door-knock appeals and food drives. They also established homes for wounded soldiers to recover in and raised money for their families. While hundreds and hundreds of nurses rushed overseas to serve, nurses were still needed on the home front. Many women decided to become a ‘Voluntary Aid Detachment’ (VAD) worker. The key role of a VAD member was that of nursing in hospitals, carrying out menial but essential tasks. They mostly did things like: scrubbing floors, sweeping, dusting, cleaning bathrooms and other areas, dealing with bedpans, and washing patients. They were not employed in military hospitals; instead, they worked in the previously mentioned Red Cross recovery homes, canteens, and on troop trains.
In 1916, the Australian Women's Service Corps (AWSC) was formed in an attempt to make the government aware of women who wanted to do more towards the War. The Corps' job was to train women to work in jobs that were previously only male occupations. The idea of this was that it would make men available to enlist, with the knowledge that things would be taken care of at home. While this idea was good in theory, it was ignored by the male-dominated government of the time. However, this service was used successfully throughout World War Two.
In 1916, the Australian Women's Service Corps (AWSC) was formed in an attempt to make the government aware of women who wanted to do more towards the War. The Corps' job was to train women to work in jobs that were previously only male occupations. The idea of this was that it would make men available to enlist, with the knowledge that things would be taken care of at home. While this idea was good in theory, it was ignored by the male-dominated government of the time. However, this service was used successfully throughout World War Two.
Diary entry from Jane Bassett.
"Soon after the war began, women and girls were knitting socks, scarves and balaclavas, for the soldiers. They knitted at home, on trams, in churches. When they ran out of knitting needles, they made new ones from bicycle spokes: when they ran out of dye, they used onion skins and wattle bark; when they ran out of wool, they learnt to spin their own." (Bassett, J, 1915)
Women also played an important role in influencing men to enlist. Women would often shame men who had not enlisted by turning away from them in the street or showing them a white feather, which symbolised cowardice. Images of women were often used in propaganda; recruiters tended to play on the ‘vulnerability’ of women. Often depicting young ladies in need of the Australian soldiers to save them from the ‘evil Germans’, who were depicted as gruesome monsters, ready to devour young women.
WW1 women in propaganda – photographs courtesy of <http://www.ww1propaganda.com/world-war-1-posters/women-ww1?page=10> accessed 6 Nov, 2013