Equal Pay
- It became a major issue after women were given the right to vote
- Second World War brought an influx of female workers
- They did not return to their traditional role
- In the 1980s women working full time still only made 64% of what men made
- Part of the problem is the type of jobs that women fill in the workforce ('pink collar' syndrome)
- 47% of single mothers in the USA live under the poverty line
- Many women feel things won't change until more women enter into politics
The Women's Rights Movement
- The modern women's rights movement began with Betty Frieden's "The Feminine Mystique" a book about women being dissatisfied with their role
- 1966 She funds the National Organization for Women (NOW)
- They fought for the Equal Rights Amendment, which prohibited discrimination by gender
- It was defeated
- 1973 the Supreme Court struck down laws which prohibited abortion
- 1970 Gloria Steinem took over NOW
- The group split over the abortion issue in the 1980s
summary
After women were given the right to vote equal pay became a major issue. Because world war II brought an influx of female workers, they didn't want to go back to their traditional jobs. In that time women were getting only 64% of the pay men did. One of the problems was that women were taking jobs that traditionally payed less than the ones men were taking which created the pink collar syndrome.