From Construction Workers to Tram Conductors
From Construction Workers to Tram Conductors

Female Labour in Hungary during the Great War

Summary/Abstract: Before the outbreak of the First World War, the majority of the Austro- Hungarian public opinion firmly believed, that women were incapable of filling in certain fields of works. According to them, females were irresponsible and they could not concentrate for a longer period of time to serious tasks. This was the reason for the fact that until 1914 the members of the „weaker gender” could not even think about gaining equal rights with their male counterparts in the field of labour. The declaration of war and the mobilization of the Central Powers’ troops completely redrew the picture. Women living within the borders of the Austro- Hungarian Monarchy did not salute to the war. Neither did the leading bourgeois feminists associations of the two countries, who had been making constant efforts for several years to promote the political, economic and social rights of females. However, they did not inhibit the war preparations, but tried to solve the more and more serious problems in the home front.

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