The War Manpower Commission was a

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

agency of the

United States Government The federal government of the United States (U.S. federal government or U.S. government) is the national government of the United States, a federal republic located primarily in North America, composed of 50 states, a city within a fede ...

charged with planning to balance the labor needs of agriculture, industry and the armed forces.

History

The Commission was created by

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) *President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...

Franklin D. Roosevelt Franklin Delano Roosevelt (; ; January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), often referred to by his initials FDR, was an American politician and attorney who served as the 32nd president of the United States from 1933 until his death in 1945. As the ...

in Executive Order 9139 of April 18, 1942. Its chairman was

Paul V. McNutt Paul Vories McNutt (July 19, 1891 – March 24, 1955) was an American diplomat and politician who served as the 34th governor of Indiana, high commissioner to the Philippines, administrator of the Federal Security Agency, chairman of the ...

, head of the Federal Security Agency. In this Executive Order, the War Manpower Commission was headed by the Federal Security Administrator as Chairman, and consisted of representatives from the Department of War, the

Department of the Navy Navy Department or Department of the Navy may refer to: * United States Department of the Navy, * Navy Department (Ministry of Defence), in the United Kingdom, 1964-1997 * Confederate States Department of the Navy, 1861-1865 * Department of the ...

, the Department of Agriculture, the

Department of Labor The Ministry of Labour ('' UK''), or Labor ('' US''), also known as the Department of Labour, or Labor, is a government department responsible for setting labour standards, labour dispute mechanisms, employment, workforce participation, training, a ...

, the

War Production Board The War Production Board (WPB) was an agency of the United States government that supervised war production during World War II. President Franklin D. Roosevelt established it in January 1942, with Executive Order 9024. The WPB replaced the Sup ...

, the Labor Production Division of the War Production Board, the Selective Service System, and the

United States Civil Service Commission The United States Civil Service Commission was a government agency of the federal government of the United States and was created to select employees of federal government on merit rather than relationships. In 1979, it was dissolved as part of t ...

to ensure effective mobilization of manpower in the post-war era.

Executive Order 9279 Executive ( exe., exec., execu.) may refer to: Role or title * Executive, a senior management role in an organization ** Chief executive officer (CEO), one of the highest-ranking corporate officers (executives) or administrators ** Executive dire ...

, dated December 5, 1942, transferred the Selective Service System to the War Manpower Commission. However, a year later it was made a separate agency directly responsible to the President. McNutt appointed all men to his labor advisory committee, despite the pleas of

Women's Bureau The United States Women's Bureau (WB) is an agency of the United States government within the United States Department of Labor. The Women's Bureau works to create parity for women in the labor force by conducting research and policy analysis, to ...

director, Mary Anderson, to have women represented. Instead, he created a Women's Advisory Committee appointing thirteen prominent women professionals, business executives, journalists, educators and organizational presidents. However, he did not provide a budget and its members were not paid.

Gallery

File:Paul V McNutt Oct 1941.jpg, Paul V. McNutt, head of the War Manpower Commission File:"Your President Says" - NARA - 516277.jpg,

President Truman Harry S. Truman (May 8, 1884December 26, 1972) was the 33rd president of the United States, serving from 1945 to 1953. A leader of the Democratic Party, he previously served as the 34th vice president from January to April 1945 under Franklin ...

calling on workers to stay on the job File:Cassel Campbell Goss (Case 9-BR-122), Complaint - NARA - 292367.tif, War Manpower Commission and employment discrimination complaint against aircraft engine manufacturer

Pratt & Whitney Pratt & Whitney is an American aerospace manufacturer with global service operations. It is a subsidiary of Raytheon Technologies. Pratt & Whitney's aircraft engines are widely used in both civil aviation (especially airlines) and military aviat ...

File:Women Want to "Get It Over".gif, Page from Women Want to "Get It Over"

References

External links

National Archives: Records of the War Manpower Commission
* ttp://www.ibiblio.org/hyperwar/ATO/USGM/EWA.html 1945 U.S. Government Manual: Directory of Emergency War Agencies {{authority control Government agencies established in 1942 Conscription in the United States Defunct agencies of the United States government Agencies of the United States government during World War II 1942 establishments in the United States