slacks and calluses

Slacks and Calluses: Our Summer in a Bomber Factory Women had different perspectives during World War 2. Many served in different branches of armed forces. Some labored in war productions plants. Most women stayed at home and had other responsibilities to raise children, balance check books, and some labored in war-related office jobs, while the men went to war. In addition to factory work and other front jobs about 350,000 women joined the Armed services, serving at home and abroad. “Rosie the Riveter,” later became a popular propaganda for women. While women worked in a variety of positions closed to them the industry saw the greatest increase in female’s workers. More than 310,000 women worked in the U.S. aircraft industry in 1943, representing 65 percent of the industry total workforce. The industry recruited women workers, represented by the U.S. government. In Slacks and Calluses these women were employed at Consolidated Voltee Aircraft, located in San Diego. This book relates to the daily duties, shifting norms and the work stages in the summer of 1943. Swing shift on a B-24 production lives at a bomber plant. Two women by the names of Constance Bowman and Clara Marie Allen told the story of what went on daily while they worked at the bomber plant. A couple of questions needed to be answered though. What does Slacks and Calluses reveal about social class in lives of women? Does Slacks and Calluses support the idea that the country eagerly embraced the idea of women leaving the home to work in factories for war production? Did the women in the factories work there out of a sense of patriotism, or because they lacked other opportunities? The social class tension caused by the “real work” as teachers slowly faded away. They quickly realized that teaching was not their real jobs anymore. Towards the end of summer they encourage women line workers who have not finished their high school diploma to commit themselves to that goal. The way women dressed started