The Australian lifestyle changed greatly in the 1920's, and mostly for the better. Some main changes included the movement of "modern" women, new technologies, and the political threat of communism. This period reflected the relief and enjoyment of the end of the First World War. It was time to explore new technologies, new lifestyles and a new Australia.
During World War I, men were conscripted to fight for their country in the trenches. This resulted in the women taking over the workforce, often performing male tasks. However, when the soldiers returned, life seemed to change back to the way it was and the male re-entered the workforce. This highlighted the previous inequality between the genders, and the women demanded equal rights. Conflict often rose between women themselves, as the change from traditional to new lifestyles caused differences between old and new values.
The modern woman opposed, cutting the skirt's length and adding silk stockings and hats that cover the hair, also introducing high heels to accommodate the new fashion. By doing this, the "long and thin" look was achieved. Another thing that women wanted to change was their wages. The average weekly salary for men in 1928 was $10.40, whereas the women's was $8.80. This was partly because there was still a view that women only took up jobs to fill in the years before marriage. Most women still did housework, but their life changed for the better due to the invention of such useful home appliances as the electric iron, a range of new cookers, the sewing machine and the electric vacuum cleaner. Although these appliances were initially targeted at an upper class, they changed the life of the house working middle-class wife forever.
The changes overtaking Australian lives saw the evolution of new technologies. New methods of transportation included the automobile, (mostly imported from Britain and America), the electrification of trains spread through Sydney and Melbourne, as well as buses and trams.
