During World War II many social changes took place in the United States. One of the most important changes was the advancement of women's rights. The war was a time when many men were called to serve in the military at home and abroad. With a large percent of the working population gone there was a need for new workers. Women were able to fill in for their husbands and brothers who were forced to leave their jobs to serve in the military. This social change of allowing women to enter into the workforce was beneficial to the advancement of women's rights as well as the productivity of the US during the war. .
The United States at this time was a highly industrialized nation with many factories. These many factories needed many workers, and women were there to take on the role. "From 1940 to 1944 over 6 million women joined the workforce, filling jobs that had previously been exclusively male." (The Rosie the Riveter Story) These women made a big impact even though they only amounted to about four percent of the skilled industrial workers during the war years. (Harcourt School Publishers) "For years women had been limited to sewing clothing, painting faces on watches and other low-paying jobs in light-manufacturing. Convincing America that women could handle heavy work like riveting aircraft cowls, welding personnel carriers and building military equipment became a huge public relations project." (How America's Women Won the War) Housewives and homemakers were also encouraged to join by companies who offered child care and some offered to give out meals for the women to take home to their families. (Harcourt School Publishers) With this new role of women in the workforce, a new image of the working woman was born and a woman named Rosie the Riveter was created to represent it. .
Rosie the Riveter was a propaganda tool used during WWII. She was a fictitious character created to represent and encourage women to take over factory jobs of men who went off to war.