Eksamensnummer:

333866

British Studies 1
Fall 2014 Semester
Home assignment

Eksamensnummer:
333866

3) Discuss the changing role of women in the UK since the end of World War II.
Discuss the social changes which have occurred which have altered the way
women live their lives. Also discuss challenges women may still face in UK society.
In 1916 Compulsory military service was introduced in Great Britain, because the amount of
volunteering men in World War 1 was unable to cover the bloody battles on the Western Front.
Women took over the functions of society which had been reserved for men. 1Women over 30 years
old were given the vote in 1918, because they had earned it during World War 1. They got their own
party, WSPU, where the intent of the party was greater equality between men and women. But the
party disappeared shortly after and it wasnt until 1928 that women were given the same voting
rights as men.2 In the 1930s, the social roles were very clearly defined, the women should be at
home to take care of the family and the men served on the labour market to support the family with
money. Women who did not have a family to support had the opportunity to work; however, they
were paid less, even if they worked the same as the men. 3Worlds War 2 gave the women a second
chance to prove what they could do and to improve their terms.
Just as in the World War 1, women were called in to help on the land and WLA was reformed in
July 1939. In 1943 there was a shortage of women in factories and on the land, so the state began to
stop women from signing up for the armed forces. So they had to either work on the land or in
factories. Those who worked on the land did a very valuable work for the British people. Those who
worked in factories made ammunition, uniforms, aircraft, for example. However, even the
experienced female workers got paid less than inexperienced male workers. But this was changed
when they in 1943 began to strike and demonstrate, subsequent wage was changed to women
getting the same salary as a semi-experienced male worker, which was better than before.4

1http://www.denstoredanske.dk/Geografi_og_historie/Storbritannien_og_Irland/Britiske_
%C3%B8er_generelt/Storbritannien_%28Historie%29/Storbritannien_%28Historie__Perioden_1914-45%29#2._Verdenskrig
2 http://www.leksikon.org/art.php?n=1505
3 http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/british/britain_wwtwo/women_at_war_01.shtml
4 http://www.historylearningsite.co.uk/women_WW2.htm

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There were women from volunteering organizations that would provide soldiers with tea and
supplies, and in 1943 there were 1 million members of the WVS.
Then women could also participate in the military inside three areas, the army, air force and the
navy.
Many women also worked as secret agents and then they were also extremely important in the
entertainment business.5
When the war ended in 1945, there were 460,000 women in the military and over 6.5 million inside
civilian war work. 6Women were hailed with recruitment posters that showed women as glamorous
and independent, and images of women, especially in uniform, were used for everything from
selling cigarettes to shoes. Women's influence in the war were mentioned in newspapers and
magazines. However, when the war reached its end, many women were sent home because of the
returning soldiers should have work.7 However, there was sustained economic growth in the periods
between 40s and 50s where there was a great need for labour for post-war reconstruction. It created
many job opportunities which were seen as more female work such as nursery, midwives, cleaners
and office staff. During this period, bank, textile and light industries such as electronics also
expanded which gave women opportunities for jobs in clerical, secretary - and assembly work. Jobs
were still strictly categorized by gender and women still had lower wages than men.8
Throughout the 1950s, the women continued with the fight for equal pay, where female teachers
and civil servants were the first who received equal pay in 1961-62 but it was only valid if both men
and women were employed in the same place. However, most women worked in the public sector
which was highly segregated, so they did not get this equal pay.9

5 http://www.historylearningsite.co.uk/women_WW2.htm
6 http://www.historylearningsite.co.uk/women_WW2.htm

7 http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/british/britain_wwtwo/women_at_war_01.shtml
8 http://www.striking-women.org/module/women-and-work/post-world-war-ii-19461970
9 http://www.striking-women.org/module/women-and-work/post-world-war-ii-19461970

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But June 7th, 1968 a change took place, because female seamstress who sewed seat covers in cars
for Fords car company went on strike. They were paid 13 % less than men because their work was
classified as unskilled. But the women claimed that their work required the same skills as men's
work. Initially the union and male workers did not support to the requirement for the increase of
women's wages. But when the stock of car seats ran out, it resulted in an end to all cars
manufacturing for Ford, who negotiated a settlement. They were given the increase which
corresponded to 92% of what men got in wages. Subsequently there were many more strikes for
equal pay in 1968-69, which led to a passage to the Equal Pay Act in 1970, the first legislation in
the world to stop wage discrimination between men and women. It required a bit more strikes for
the women who worked in Ford the following year, for a full equal pay as men.10
In 1975, the Sex Discrimination Act got adopted, in which women were treated in the same way as
men when it came to education, housing and employment.
Although there have been changes in the laws, women are still currently employed in less skilled
and less paid work than men, and many women will are expected to work and take care for the
family at the same time.11

5) The UK has experienced a high degree of immigration since 1945. This

immigration has produced sharp debates as to whether immigration has a positive
or negative impact on the UK. Briefly identify groups which are most strongly
opposed to immigration. Discuss the arguments pro and con concerning whether
immigration is having a positive or negative social impact on the UK.
The National Front (NF) and the British National Party (BNP) have been strongly opposed to nonwhite immigration. 12 The NF was formed in 1967, the party was firmly opposed to immigration,

10 http://www.striking-women.org/module/women-and-work/post-world-war-ii-19461970
11
http://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/standard/history/scotland_britain_1880_now/employmen
t_women/revision/5/
12 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Far-right_politics_in_the_United_Kingdom

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improved race relations or multiculturalism. It had 20,000 members by the mid-1970s although its
existence had largely diminished by the late 1970s.13
The BNP was formed in 1982 as well as anti-immigration policies, the party advocates the
reintroduction of capital punishment and opposes same-sex marriage, multiculturalism and what it
perceives as the islamification of the UK.14

After World War II many British cities had been bombed, and therefore laid in ruins. UK was
therefore in need for both financial assistance and labour to rebuild society. They got economical
help from the United States but they needed people from abroad to get the necessary manpower.
Thus, they turned to their colonies and especially to the Caribbean Islands. They gave citizenship to
people from the colonies and all the Commonwealth countries could get into the UK free. The first
group that was allowed to settle were Poles, as the UK and Poland were linked to each other during
the war years. They also got Italians, but this was not enough to meet the demand for UK. 15 They
could not recruit enough people from Europe, so they turned to men from the West Indie who did
not have that many work opportunities. 492 Jamaicans came to Tilbury in the Thames, south of
London in 1948 and from then on was the beginning of Black Britain and the start of mass
immigration. 16
After a while many settlers came from India, Pakistan and Bangladesh in Asia, and from Kenya,
Uganda and Nigeria in Africa. Both skilled and unskilled workers settled down where there was
work to be found, notably the mill towns of North West England, industrial towns in the Midlands
and in Londons East End. Britain needed both unskilled and skilled labour, particularly in
connection with the newly established Welfare State a system that would provide free healthcare
for a needy population. The National Health Service (NHS) was in need of doctors and nurses and
13 Seminar Nov 28 Seminar Immigration & Multiculturalism F2014 slide 93 - Blackboard.
14

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_National_Party

15
http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/static/in_depth/uk/2002/race/short_history_of_immigra
tion.stm#1946
16 http://www.schoolhistory.co.uk/studentforum/index.php?showtopic=6382

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they were actively recruited, especially from Asian countries. In addition, many immigrants began
working in the London Transport system. 17Thousands of immigrants from India and Pakistan went
to work in the textile towns of Yorkshire and Lancashire. These people were resourceful, hardworking and prepared to work unsocial hours. Pakistanis became stereotyped for their corner
shops, selling everything and open all hours, and by 1970 there were 2,000 Indian restaurants and
4,000 Chinese restaurants in Britain.18
In the mid 1960s, the UK economy had full employment. The immigration from the New
Commonwealth (i.e. black countries of the Commonwealth) grew from 21.550 entrants in 1959, to
58.300 in 1960, and to 125.400 in 1961.19 This sudden increase in Britain was partly due to fears
that the British government was preparing to limit the numbers allowed into the country.
There were a rise of racial violence and prejudice as the immigration raised. In 1962, through the
Commonwealth Immigrants Act, access to Britain was restricted which meant that immigrants from
the former British colonies had to have a pre-arranged job before entering Britain, or have special
skills required by the British economy.

20

In 1968, the Commonwealth Immigrants Act tightened controls further, and immigrants now needed
to have a parent or grandparent who had been born in Britain.21
In 1971, the Immigrants Act was even more tightened which meant that only 12-month work
permits were issued so that immigrants could only remain in Britain for a limited time. By the early
1970s, Britain had virtually stopped all black and Asian primary immigration.22
White Britons tended to define immigration as a problem and blaming immigration for all of
societys ills, when full employment was no longer guaranteed, the union Unions complained that
17 http://www.schoolhistory.co.uk/studentforum/index.php?showtopic=6382
18 http://www.schoolhistory.co.uk/studentforum/index.php?showtopic=6382
19 http://www.schoolhistory.co.uk/studentforum/index.php?showtopic=6382
20 Seminar Nov 28 Seminar Immigration & Multiculturalism F2014.ppt slide 92

21 Seminar Nov 28 Seminar Immigration & Multiculturalism F2014.ppt- slide 92

22 Seminar Nov 28 Seminar Immigration & Multiculturalism F2014.ppt slide 92

Eksamensnummer:
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immigrants were taking jobs from white people by accepting lower wages. Some politicians and
members of the public argued that many immigrants were coming to Britain, not to work, but to
receive generous welfare benefits. 23They didnt blame the thousands of Irishmen, Americans,
Australians and Europeans who kept coming to Britain but the arrival of non-white immigrants
from former colonies. Competition for jobs, housing and positions in society, combined with the
visible differences, created unrest in many inner city areas and politicians gradually moved their
focus away from immigration control to regulation of race relations.

24

Immigrants contributed really well to the development of British society. With Asians helped to
expand the textile industry, the Caribbean brought in the music like reggae and calypso, and food
from all the different corners of the world came to Britains cities. Britains national dish is
considered to be curry, and Chinese and Bangladeshi immigrants have created cultural festivals and
practices in and around their Chinatowns and Banglatowns. In recent years, the Notting Hill
Carnival has mobilised huge crowds of people, both white and black Britons.25

23 Seminar Nov 28 Seminar Immigration & Multiculturalism F2014.ppt slide 81

24 http://ndla.no/en/node/90712
25 http://ndla.no/en/node/90712