The War at Home

Total War By 1942, Canada was committed to a policy of “Total War”. All industries, materials and people were put to work for the war effort.

Government and the Economy The war launched Canada out of the depression and into an economic boom. Canada became an industrial power, new factories were built, and old ones adapted for war purposes. Factories churned out thousands of guns, ships, fighter planes and military vehicles. We had quickly earned a reputation amongst the Allied forces as a consistent, efficient and reliable source of production and manufacturing for the war effort.

Canadian Production Aircraft Rifles Military Vehicles Merchant Ships410 Landing Craft3 302 Navy Tugs254 Tanks6 500 Escort Ships487 Machine Guns

Minister of Munitions and Supply Was given a considerable amount of control over Canada’s war economy Predicted “never again will there be any doubt that Canada can manufacture anything that can be manufactured anywhere else” Biographers all agree that he had a very focused and sometimes aggressive disposition He had the authority to tell businessmen from the private section what to they were expected to produce and exactly how much C.D Howe

Labour With so many men enlisting, Canada faced a labour shortage as early as 1941, most notably in war-related industries. In 1942, the Canadian government passed the National Selective Service Act to mobilize the country’s labour resources for the benefit of the war effort. One of the main strategies of the program was to recruit women for the work force.

“Women, Back Them Up -To Bring Them Back!” ■ At first only single women were recruited, but upon severe labour shortages, both married women and mothers were sought out; the government even funded daycare centres so that women would be free to work. ■ In 1943, there were approximately 225,000 Canadian women working in munitions factories.

In 1941, for the first time in Canadian history, women were able to enlist in their own divisions of the Army, Navy and Air Force. Although Canadian women were not allowed into combat during the Second World War, they did just about everything else. Women served as nurses, stretcher bearers, drivers, machine operators, cooks and secretaries. They also flew Canadian built planes to bases in Britain and ferried officers and politicians from Ottawa to London. They were paid roughly 60% of what their male counterparts earned

Enlistment By Women In Canada’s Armed Forces: Navy6 781 Air Force Army Medical Services4 518 Doctors58 Over 43,000 women served overseas in the Canadian Women’s Army Corps, the Royal Women’s Navy Service and the Women’s Division of the Royal Canadian Air Force.

Wartime Prices and The Trade Board Prime Minister Mackenzie King was determined to avoid the problems of greed and inflation which had plagued the Canadian political landscape during the first World War The government set up the Wartime Prices and Trade Board (WPTB) to control prices and supervise the distribution of food and other scarce goods.

Rationing To ensure there was a large enough supply to meet both military and civilian needs, certain staple goods were rationed. Rationed Items Included: Meat, Butter, Tea, Coffee, Gasoline, Tires (rubber), Alcohol, Clothing Fabric and Silk

Financing the War The Canadian Government did raise taxes during the Second World War to help offset the cost of financing the war. The increased revenue from higher taxes accounted for about one-half of all war-related expenses. To help pay for the rest, the Canadian government turned to an old idea: Victory Loans drives. The government conducted nine Victory Loan drives between June 1941 and October These campaigns raised nearly $12 billion by the end of the war.

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