Employment and living standards

• LIfe for Germans before the Nazis , and why the Nazis were appealing

  • The German people had suffered terribly during both the First World War and the Depression 
  • A huge part of the Nazis’ appeal was that they promised to make Germany’s economy strong again
• Hitler's plan for unemployment and economy

  • Hitler aimed for full employment and by 1939 there was virtually no official unemployment in Germany
  • He also wanted to make Germany self-sufficient, a concept known as autarky , but the attempt to do so was ultimately unsuccessful
• How did Hitler increase employment

  • Public works 
  • Rearmament 
  • National service

  
• How did Hitler use Public works to increase employment?


  • He began a huge programme of public works, which included building hospitals, schools, and public buildings such as the 1936 Olympic Stadium
  • The construction of the autobahns created work for 80,000 men
• How did Hitler use Rearmament to increase Employment?

  • Rearmament was responsible for the bulk of economic growth between 1933 and 1938
  • Rearmament started almost as soon as Hitler came to power but was announced publicly in 1935
  • This created millions of jobs for German workers
• How did Hitler use National Service to increase employment?

  The introduction of the National Labour Service (NLS) meant all young men spent six months in the NLS and were then conscripted into the army
• Although Germany claimed to have full employment by 1939, many groups of people were not included in the statistics, including:


  • The 1.4 million men in the army at this time.
  • Jews who were sacked and their jobs given to non-Jews.
  • Women who were encouraged to give up their jobs to men
• Autarky

  • The policy of Autarky was a failure
  • In 1937, Hermann Göring was made Economics Minister with the job of making Germany self-sufficient in four years
  • However, the measures he introduced, such as tighter controls on imports and subsidies for farmers to produce more food, were not successful
  • By the outbreak of World War Two Germany was still importing 20% of its food and 33% of its raw materials
• Some aspects of life improved under the Nazis

  Despite the loss of freedom, some aspects life improved in Germany for many ordinary people if they were prepared to conform in order to have a job and a wage
• Nazi economic policies had different effects on different groups in society:

  • Big businesses 
  • Small businesses 
  • Farmers
• How were big businesses affected by Nazi economic policies?

  • By 1937 monopolies (which the Nazis had promised to tackle) controlled over 70% of production
  • Rearmament from 1935 onwards boosted profits and managers of the major industrial companies saw their wages rise by 50% between 1933 and 1939
• How were small businesses affected by Nazi economic policies?

  Rules on opening and running small businesses were tightened, which resulted in 20% of them closing
• How were farmers affected by Nazi economic policies?

  • Having been one of the main sources of their electoral support during their rise to power, farmers benefited under the Nazis
  • By 1937, agricultural prices had increased by 20% and agricultural wages rose more quickly than those in industry
  • The Hereditary Farm Law of 1933 prevented farms from being repossessed from their owners, which gave farming families greater security
  • The downside, however, was that farmers could no longer sell their farms which kept them fixed on the land
• The Nazi's need for Industrial worker's support

  • Before 1933 the Nazis had lacked support amongst the workers, who tended to vote for the communists or the Social Democratic Party
  • The needs of German rearmament made it important that workers were productive and controlled
• Organisations the Nazis set up to manage workers

  • The German Labour Front (DAF) - This was a Nazi organisation that replaced Trades Unions, which were banned. It set wages and nearly always followed the wishes of employers, rather than employees.
  • Strength Through Joy - This scheme gave workers rewards for their work - evening classes, theatre trips, picnics, and even very cheap or free holidays.
  • Beauty of Labour - The job of this organisation was to help Germans see that work was good, and that everyone who could work should. It also encouraged factory owners to improve conditions for workers
• Life for people who did not work in industry during the Nazis' rule

  • Those working in the rearmament industries aside, living standards did not really improve for German workers under the Nazis
  • From 1933 to 1939 wages fell, the number of hours worked rose by 15%, serious accidents in factories increased and workers could be blacklisted by employers if they attempted to question their working conditions