The Ypsilanti daily press. (Ypsilanti, Mich.) 1928-1962, 1945-08-23
Observations
Sixteen Million
Women in Need
of Pay Checks

NOMch 10 AON want " NoAPpAS
with veterans, but Jobs must be
provided for more than IS million
women who need those pay checks.
So says the No. ! authority on
womanpower problems, Miss Mar
garet A. Hickey, chairman OF the
women's advisory committee OF the
War Manpower Commission. She's
the woman VINO Chairman Paul
McNutt calls in when he has
''womanpower' headache.
Miss Hickey does not get all ex-
cited about the veterans compel-
ton phase OF the forgetting task
facing women in the postwar
world.
Says she: Whenever you talk OF
a working woman you're describing
the wife, sister or mother OF a
veteran and she wants him back
at work"
Then with a smile, she adds.
Are you going to ask the veteran
TO take care Of all his female rela-
tives?"
Miss Hickey thinks veterans be-
long at the head OF the Job line,
but she also wants women judged
on the basis OF competence instead
of sex.
This ST. Louis business woman
Is weary OF hearing people say, "A
womans place is in the home" She
wants TO know, What homer"
OF the 1928, 900 women working
now. 100000 are unmarried. The
prospects OF these girls finding
husbands isn't too bright either.
Right now there are three mar
riageable girls-in the 1884 age
group-to every potential husband.
The same thing happened after
the Civil War period. A lot OF WON.
en- never had a chance TO get mar
ried. The men we're killed or they
came back TO marry younger girls.
There is q new attitude devel'
oped since World war days" says
Miss Hickey: The public now ex-
oped since World War l days. says
Miss Hackey: THE public now ex-
poets a girl 10 support herself De-
tween school and marriage. Gone
forever are girls with vell-bred In
effectiveness who live off papa IN
iii they transfer the burden TO
their husbands"
The married women whose nus
bands will not return or VIII come
back handicapped physically or &C.
cupationally, need jobs. So do the
girls whose hasty war marriages
have fallen apart. And then there
are the women who cant stretch
their husbands incomes to take
care Of needy in-laws.
Miss Hickey estimates that 80
per cent OF the working women Will
want to continue working. She In
cludes among these women the
ones who have become adjusted 10
a higher standard OF living. VINO
want TO send their children to col.
lege. or perhaps buy . beautiful
postwar home.
The national economy needs this
type OF worker because they IN
crease this country's buying power.
Take their Jobs away and you de-
stroy Jobs for other people who are
producing the tnihBS NASA 49,
checks will purchase.
What are the chances for these
more than is million women to &c.
postwar Jobs? Even the optimistic
Miss Hickey doesn't think It's going
20 be easy to find work for all OF
them.
Twelve million were in the labor
market before the war. They were
the stenographers, nurses, wait,
resses, teachers, sales girls ana
clerks. This segment is pretty Sc
cure except those who shifted 10
war Jobs. They will be seeking per-
manent Jobs, but they'll not be as
much Of problem as some OF the
others.
The inexperienced girl can look
ahead to a tough time. She will be
seeking q Job in a tight labor mar
ket. She will have no seniority 70
help. The women, trained on one
particular Job in war production
will also be among the ine1per'
fenced.