Canadian women during the World Wars During the twentieth century women of the world became indispensable in the world wars because they were total war s that required the maximum effort of the civilian population . While Canadians were deeply divided on the issue of conscription for men , there was wide agreement that women had important new roles to play in the home , in civic life , in industry , in nursing , and even in military uniforms . Historians debate whether there was much long - term impact on the postwar roles of women . First World War . Julia Grace Wales published the Canada Plan , a proposal to set up a mediating conference consiting of intellectuals from neutral nations who would work to find a suitable solution for the First World War . The plan was presented to the United States Congress , but despite arousing the interest of President Wilson , failed when the US entered the war . During the First World War , there was virtually no female presence in the Canadian armed forces , with the exception of the 3141 nurses serving both overseas and on the home front . Of these women , 328 had been decorated by King George V , and 46 gave their lives in the line of duty . Even though a number of these women received decorations for their efforts , many high - ranking military personnel still felt that they were unfit for the job . One notable adversary of the effort was Col . Guy Carleton Jones , he stated that , “ Active service work is extremely severe , and a large portion of R . N . ’ s are totally unfit for it , mentally or physically . ” Although the Great War , had not officially been opened up to women , they did feel the pressures at home . There had been a gap in employment when the men enlisted ; many women strove to fill this void along with keeping up with their responsibilities at home . When war broke out Laura Gamble enlisted in the Canadian Army Medical Corps , because she knew that her experience in a Toronto hospital would be an asset to the war efforts . Canadian nurses where the only nurses of the Allied armies that held the rank of officers . Gamble was presented with a Royal Red Cross , 2nd Class medal , for her show of “ greatest possible tact and extreme devotion to duty . ” This was awarded to her at Buckingham Palace during a special ceremony for Canadian nurses . Health care practitioners had to deal with medical anomalies they had never seen during the First World War . The chlorine gas that was used by the Germans caused injuries that treatment protocols had not yet been developed for . The only treatment that soothed the Canadian soldiers affected by the gas was the constant care they received from the nurses . Canadian nurses were especially well known for their kindness . Canadians had expected that women would feel sympathetic to the war efforts , but the idea that they would contribute in such a physical way was absurd to most . Because of the support that women had shown from the beginning of the war , people began to see their value in the war . In May 1918 , a meeting was held to discuss the possible creation of the Canadian Women ' s Corps . In September , the motion was approved , but the project was pushed aside because the wars end was in sight . On the Canadian home front , there were many ways which women could participate in the war effort . Lois Allan joined the Farm Services Corps in 1918 , to replace the men who were sent to the front . Allan was placed at E . B . Smith and Sons where she hulled strawberries for jam . Jobs were opened up at factories as well , as industrial production increased . Work days for these women consisted of ten to twelve hours , six days a week . Because the days consisted of long monotonous work , many women made of parodies of popular songs to get through the day and boost morale . Depending on the area of Canada , some women were given a choice to sleep in either barracks or tents at the factory or farm that they were employed at . According to a brochure that was issued by the Canadian Department of Public Works , there were several areas in which it was appropriate for women to work . These were : In addition many women were involved in charitable organization such as the Ottawa Women ’ s Canadian Club , which helped provide the needs of soldiers , families of soldiers and the victims of war . Women were deemed ‘ soldiers on the home front ’ , encouraged to use less or nearly everything , and to be frugal in order to save supplies for the war efforts . Second World War . When Canada declared war in 1939 , women felt obligated to help the fight . In October 1938 , the Women ’ s Volunteer Service was established in Victoria , British Columbia . A recruitment event was held in hopes of gaining around 20 new volunteers ; over 100 women arrived to join the efforts . Shortly after , more British Columbian women felt the need to do their part , and when the 13 corps joined together the B . C . Women ’ s Service Corps was created . Soon after , all the other Canadian provinces and territories followed suit and similar volunteer groups emerged . “ Husbands , brothers , fathers , boyfriends were all joining up , doing something to help win the war . Surely women could help as well ! ” In addition to the Red Cross , several volunteer corps had designed themselves after auxiliary groups from Britain . These corps had uniforms , marching drills and a few had rifle training . It soon was clear , that a unified governing system would be beneficial to the corps . The volunteers in British Columbia donated $ 2 each to pay the expenses so a representative could talk to politicians in Ottawa . Although all of the politicians appeared sympathetic to the cause , it remained ‘ premature ’ in terms of national necessity . In England , women had been recruited much earlier than in Canada . In fact , Canada was very late in granting this permission than the rest of the Commonwealth . The British Mechanized Transport Corps had begun to see the women of Canada as a great asset to the war effort , and began to look into the recruitment of these women for their purposes . In June 1941 , they were officially given permission to recruit women in Canada for overseas duty . It quickly became apparent that it would look very odd for the British to be recruiting in Canada when , no there was no corresponding Canadian service . However , many of the women who were active in the various volunteer corps did not meet the requirements to be enlisted women . The majority of these women were older than the accepted age , would not pass the fitness test , or had physical or medical impairments . It was quickly realized that the women needed had jobs and were not free to join . In June 1941 , the Canadian Women ’ s Army Corps was established . The women who enlisted took over On July 2 , 1942 , women were given permission to enlist in what would be known as the Canadian Women ’ s Auxiliary Air Force . Lastly the Royal Canadian Navy created the Women ' s Royal Canadian Naval Service ( WRCNS or Wrens ) . The Wrens were the only corps that were officially a part of their sanctioning body as a women ’ s division . This led to bureaucratic issues that would be solved most easily by absorbing the civilian corps governed by military organizations , into women ’ s divisions as soldiers . According to the RCAF the following are the requirements of an enlisted woman : Women would not be considered for enlistment : Training centres were required for all of the new recruits . They could not be sent to the existing centres as it was necessary that they be separated from male recruits . The Canadian Women ’ s Army Corps set up centres in Vermilion , Alberta , and Kitchener , Ontario . Ottawa and Toronto were the locations of the training centres for the Canadian Women ’ s Auxiliary Air Force . The Wrens were outfitted in Galt , Ontario . Each service had to come up with the best possible appeal to the women joining , for they all wanted them . In reality , the women went where their fathers , brothers and boyfriends were . Women had numerous reasons for wanting to join the effort ; whether they had a father , husband , or brother in the forces , or simply felt the patriotic duty to help . One woman blatantly exclaimed that she could not wait to turn eighteen to enlist , because she had fantasies of assassinating Hitler . Many women lied about their age to enlist , usually girls around the age of 16 or 17 . A few girls made it through between the ages of 12 to 15 , not unknown to their fellow recruits , as a couple even brought their teddy bears to basic . The United States would only allow women to join who were at least 21 , so many considered going to Canada . Recruitment for the different branches of the Canadian Forces was set up in places like Boston and New York . Modifications were made to girls with US citizenship , having their records marked , “ Oath of allegiance not taken by virtue of being a citizen of the United States of America . ” Interested women were encouraged not to give up their current employment until their acceptance was confirmed by the respective military group , as they may not meet the strict entrance requirements . Women were obligated to conform to the same enlistment requirements as men . They had to adhere to medical examinations , and fitness requirements as well as training in certain trades depending on the aspect of the armed forces they wanted to be a part of . Enlisted women were issued entire uniforms minus the undergarments , which they received a quarterly allowance for . To be an enlisted woman during the creation stages was not easy . Besides the fact that everyone was learning as they went , they did not receive the support they needed from the male recruits . To begin with , women were initially paid two - thirds of what a man at the same level made . As the war progressed the military leaders began to see the substantial impact the women could make . In many cases the women had outperformed their male counterparts . This was taken into account and the women received a raise to four - fifths of the wages of a man . A female doctor however , received equal financial compensation to her male counterpart . One commander argued that it would be impossible for female recruits to reach the location of his station , even though it was located only three and a half miles from the city and was serviced by a paved road and a bus route The negative reaction of men towards the female recruits was addressed in propaganda films . " Proudly She Marches " and " Wings on Her Shoulder " were made to show the acceptance of female recruits , while showing the men that although they were taking jobs traditionally intended for men , they would be able to retain their femininity . Other problems faced early on for these women were that of a more racial stature . An officer of the CWAC had to write to her superiors regarding whether or not a woman of “ Indian nationality ” would be objected for enlistment . Because of Canada ’ s large population of immigrants , German women also enlisted creating great animosity between recruits . The biggest difficulty was however the French - Canadian population . In a document dated 25 November 1941 , it was declared that enlisted women should ‘ unofficially ’ speak English . However , seeing the large number of capable women that this left out , a School of English was stabled for recruits in mid - 1942 . Once training , some women felt that they had made a mistake . Several women cracked under the pressure and were hospitalized , while others took their own lives . Other women felt the need to escape , and simply ran away . The easiest and fasted ticket home however was pregnancy . Women who found out that they were expecting were giving a special quickly executed discharge . The women who successfully graduated from training had to find ways to entertain themselves to keep morale up . Softball , badminton , tennis , and hockey were among popular pastimes for recruits . Religion was of a personal matter to the recruits . A minister of sorts was usually on site for services . For Jewish girls , it was custom that they were able to get back to their barracks by sundown on Sabbath and holidays ; a rabbi would be made available if possible . At the beginning of the war 600 , 000 women in Canada help permanent jobs in the private sector , by the peak in 1943 1 . 2 million women had jobs . Women quickly gained a good reputation for their mechanical dexterity and fine precision due to their smaller stature . At home a woman could work as : Women also had to keep their homes together while the men were away . “ An Alberta mother of nine boys , all away at either war or factory jobs – drove the tractor , plowed the fields , put up hay , and hauled grain to the elevators , along with tending her garden , raising chickens , pigs , and turkeys , and canned hundreds of jars of fruits and vegetables . ” In addition to physical jobs , women were also asked to cut back and ration . Silk and nylon were used for the war efforts , creating a shortage of stockings . Many women actually painted lines down the back of their legs to create the illusion of wearing the fashionable stockings of the time . Nurses . Over 4000 women served as nurses in uniform in the Canadian Armed Forces during the war . They were called " nursing sisters " . They they had already been professionally trained in civilian life , but in military service they achieved an elite status well above what they had experienced as civilians . The nursing sisters had much more responsibility and autonomy , and had more opportunity to use their expertise , then civilian nurses . They were often close to the front lines , and the military doctors – all men – delegated significant responsibility to the nurses because of the high level of casualties , the shortages of physicians , and extreme working conditions .