Work and Labor in the Weimar Republic

WORK AND LABOR IN THE WEIMAR REPUBLIC
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Work and Labor in the Weimar Republic
At the beginning of the 20th century, women across Europe and North America demanded equal rights as men. The realization of this demand came early for Germany, where women began to agitate for suffrage as early as 1910. Further, World War I provided a unique opportunity for women to advance their agenda. Since many men had died in war or were psychologically or physically wounded. As a result, women formed a majority of the electorate and made headways into employment opportunities that had been initially reserved for men. However, despite these opportunities and as men returned, the German woman realized that the suffering of women had been by neither the attainment of suffrage nor the attainment of economic and political freedom based on how labor or work continued to be characterized based on gender and class. The current paper draws from various sources by placing them in their historic context and determining whether they portrayed labor as classed or gendered.
The Manifesto for International women’s Day was published in 1921 when gender differences transformed the national working culture. In 1919, Article 109 of the Weimar Constitution was passed, giving men and women equal fundamental rights and duties. Further, during and after the war, women occupied critical positions in the workforce. They began to occupy positions that men had dominated before, including the mere jobs visible throughout society like store clerks and tram conductors. Thus, the 1920s saw the emergence of the New Woman: an economic figure, independent worker, wage-earner, and a key player in the free market. These are the traits that had been reserved for men. However, despite their success, the women did manage to change most German’s ideas about the role of women. The emergence of popular phrases like children, kitchen, the church began to undermine the position of women as men repossessed their positions in society. The phrase was used primarily on Mother's Day to promote the return of women to their traditional roles as mothers and wives. Within this context of historical struggle, the Manifesto for International women’s Day was published to highlight women's predicaments and the German society at large.[Die Kommunistin, “Manifesto for International Women’s Day,” 1921 in Anton Kaes, Martin Jay, and Edward Dimendberg, eds., The Weimar Republic Sourcebook (Berkeley: University of California Press), pg 199]
Taking a different approach, Herrmann draws from the concept of the New Woman to provide a historical context to her arguments and show that labor was both classed and gendered. Published in 1929, This New Woman describes a modern woman who can only be sought in formal terms. “Such a woman has refused to lead the life of a housewife and a lady…." However, such women can only flourish in urban areas where liberal thoughts are inherent, and their success depends on many factors, including how wealthy the family wars are. Thus, the historical context of this source draws from the suffrage struggle and the social, political, and economic outcomes of WWI.[Elisa Herr...