Effects of WW II

1. Effects of WW II The “COLD” war starts…. **What is the Cold War?? **How did the shift from wartime to peacetime effect life in America??

2. Post WWII • credit purchases- families wanted the new consumer goods • inflation –controls on prices were lifted -consumer goods in short supply. • passage of GI bill, education and housing benefits- veterans were guaranteed a house by the government – led to mass production of houses (Ex. Levittown on Long Island) • increased consumer spending – people starting families were buying new homes

3. Post WW II • Workers gained wages and better working conditions – 80,000 women aircraft workers laid off- Women went back to more traditional fields • Conversion from war material to consumer goods – servicemen flooded the market- industries increased their work forces • labor unions became more powerful – pay raises were on hold during the war(( automobile, steel, meatpacking, electrical miners and railroad workers all went on strike) • Changing role of women in the work force- going back to housewife

4. CAUSE AND EFFECT OF DEMOGRAPHIC CHANGES after WWII • Baby Boom • Air conditioning /// television • “Migration” to the South…WHY?? • Suburbs • Increased travel for business and pleasure • Truman- desegregation of the military (GI Bill) • Greater access to communication