Women in the armed forces
Introduction
Women made valuable contributions to the war effort on the home front in industry and volunteer organisations. World War II also saw the entry of women into military operations. Women were used in branches of the Australian army, air force and navy.
Although women were not engaged in direct fighting, they still performed important support roles for the military and worked in areas that were close to fighting and danger.
Around 78 000 women enlisted in the various services and 6000 women were posted overseas for service with the Australian army forces during the War. Service in the armed forces was another opportunity to experience life outside the household in World War II.
Despite the adventure promised by recruitment posters, the reality for women serving in the armed forces was far less glorious, often operating in base camps in menial jobs ranging from cooking to domestic service. See animation
Women's paramilitary organisations in the early war
The outbreak of the war was accompanied by a rush of women volunteering for paramilitary organisations.
The Women's Transport Corps taught women to drive trucks and large lorries, ambulances, motorcycles and cars. Their intention was to assist any organisation in Sydney that needed drivers. Although the government refused the assistance of the Women's Transport Corps, soon various companies and organisations in Sydney enlisted the women's skills to drive soldiers and deliver goods.
The Women's Emergency Signalling Corps trained 300 Sydney women in Morse code to replace men operating in post offices and other communication hubs. Although the women undertook intensive training, they found their assistance unwanted.
A Women's Flying Club, with over 300 members, was also established in Sydney. The aim of the club was to train women to take over men's jobs in the air force, should the need arise. These pioneering women learned various aspects of aircraft maintenance and some even learned to pilot light aircraft. Women's efforts were ridiculed by men who claimed they were simply 'playing soldiers'.
Paramilitary organisations were co-ordinated by the Women's Australian National Services (WANS), formed by Lady Wakehurst of Sydney. Women were trained in drill, physical exercise, administering first aid, nursing and air raid precautions.
Once basic training was completed, women could specialise in army intelligence, field telephone operation, signalling and radio service, cooking, map reading, driving, rifle shooting, and mechanics. The WANS was eventually absorbed by the Australian Women's Army Service - AWAS.
Australian Women's Army Service - AWAS
The largest of the women's paramilitary services was the Australian Women's Army Service (AWAS). This functioned not as a volunteer organisation but as a branch of the army. Women were trained to fill transport, communications, and maintenance roles. See image 1
By August 1942 there were 5000 members, by January 1944, 20 023. Total enlistment for the duration of World War II for AWAS was 31 000.
Thelma Long was one of the thousands of women who enlisted for service with the AWAS,
'I joined the Red Cross as a transport driver but when my husband went into the forces, I was free to do something which totally took my time, so I joined the AWAS. We were replacing the fit males… freeing them to go ahead and volunteer for service in the fighting units, and the three women's services… were all formed along those lines, to replace men where possible and allow them to go and fight…
The women who were going into the services were mainly doing it because they wanted to do a job, they wanted to help the war effort, they wanted to help their country.'
Women between the ages of 18 and 45 years old were recruited in 1941. Training was rigorous and designed to enable women to fight in battles should the need arise. Preference was given to women with office skills, radio operation, and Morse code experience.
Women's duties in the AWAS were usually limited to base camps as clerks, typists, cooks, and truck drivers. In 1945, a contingent was sent to support the troops in the Pacific and European theatres.
Women's Royal Australian Naval Service - WRANS
Women were also able to join a branch of the navy. The Naval Board strongly opposed the enlistment of women and saw that no women served on a naval vessel. The shortage of manpower facing the armed services forced the navy to employ women in subsidiary roles.
Initially, women's activities in the naval services were limited to only 14 women who had training as wireless telegraphists. These women were employed by the navy in April 1941. The WRANS was officially established in 1942. Throughout the War the number of women engaged in the WRANS reached 2500.
Women carried out educational work, interpretation, signalling and decoding, administration and office work, driving, and cooking.
An outstanding member of WRANS was Ruby Boye who operated as a coastwatcher in the Solomon Islands in the Pacific behind Japanese lines. She reported on important Japanese movements to the Allies, but lived in constant danger of capture. See image 2
Women's Australian Auxiliary Air Force (WAAAF)
The Australian air force also employed women. WAAAF membership numbered over 16 000 women by mid-1943 and by 1945 it had 18 000 members.
Single women joined the services and worked as telegraphists, signallers, decoders, drivers, mechanics, clerks. Women in WAAAF were not paid as much as men and often performed challenging work that required extensive technical training. Their efforts were vital to the RAAF campaigns. See image 3
Women operated within the communications network in Australia and abroad, but also performed menial tasks, such as acting as domestic servants in officers clubs.
By early 1945, 4000 women were working in signals and communications, 3000 as cooks and domestic servants, and 1500 women worked as mechanics on aircraft in other technical support jobs and as aircraft ground staff.
June Stone joined the WAAF:
'I was nineteen. (I joined) for the same reason the boys wanted to join up: you felt that you had to do something for your country. It was something entirely different and I was young. Women were stepping into these roles simply because we were a small country, they needed so many, they were committed to send so many of the young men away and the only way to handle everything was to bring the women in.
When we first joined up, uniforms didn't exist as such because they hadn't been able to plan everything, and it was a bit makeshift at times…I came from a home where my mother did practically everything for me. I went into Bankstown camp and we were the first of the WAAF in New South Wales.
Now just imagine coming from a home where you never cleaned anything, your main job was to mend your stockings, and to find out that you had to clean everything you used… Believe me, that was a culture shock!...
Very early in the piece there were some servicemen who rather resented us being there but I think in the main most of the men accepted us, they couldn't have handled it without us or a lot of the men wouldn't have been sent overseas. So we were very necessary.'
Although women dreamed of service overseas with the armed forces, real war work was seldom like the recruiting poster pictures. Women were not paid the same rates as men for their time spent in the armed forces.
They were also constantly reminded that their service was only needed as long as men were needed to fight on the front lines. Once the War was over, men would return to their usual positions, and so women were expected to do the same.
