Women at Work in 1920: The Numbers
1920 was the year American women won the constitutional right to vote. It was also a year when about 1 in 4 women worked for pay — up from 1 in 5 at the turn of the century. WWI had accelerated women's entry into industrial and clerical work; the post-war 'Roaring Twenties' would see a different kind of visibility for working women.
By specialty
| Specialty | Women (%) |
|---|---|
| Domestic Service | 25.6% |
| Clerical (stenographers, typists, clerks) | 18.7% |
| Manufacturing (Textiles, Clothing) | 22.6% |
| Agriculture | 12.9% |
| Teaching | 8.1% |
| Professional (medicine, law, engineering) | 1% |
| Nursing | 3.8% |
Trend
The 1920s saw the rise of clerical work and retail sales as 'respectable' female occupations — driven by office mechanization (the typewriter) and urban department stores. Telephone operators were almost entirely female by 1920 (98%). The decade's 'flapper' image reflected a visible subset, not most working women.
| Year | Women entering (%) |
|---|---|
| 1890 | 18% |
| 1900 | 21% |
| 1910 | 23% |
| 1920 | 24% |
| 1930 | 24% |
Patient outcomes
Key context: the 1919 passage and 1920 ratification of the 19th Amendment gave US women the right to vote. WWI had mobilized women into roles previously closed to them — public transit workers, riveters, munitions workers — many of which they were pushed out of after the war. The legal right to work as married women was still restricted by 'marriage bars' in most teaching and clerical positions.
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Women's suffrage (19th Amendment) ratified August 18, 1920. In practice, voting rights for Black women in the South would be suppressed by Jim Crow laws until the Voting Rights Act of 1965.
US National Archives · 1920
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The US Women's Bureau of the Department of Labor was established in 1920 (codified into statute in 1920, after the Women in Industry Service during WWI). It remains the federal agency responsible for women's labor statistics.
Sources
Frequently asked
What percentage of women worked for pay in 1920?
23.7% of women age 16+ — about 8.5 million workers. Up from 20.6% in 1900. Mostly young, unmarried, and concentrated in domestic service, clerical, and manufacturing.
When did US women get the right to vote?
The 19th Amendment was ratified August 18, 1920. But voting-rights barriers for Black women in the South persisted through the 1965 Voting Rights Act.
Did WWI bring women into the workforce?
Temporarily, yes — women entered munitions, transit, and industrial work during 1917-1918. Most were pushed out after the war; the lasting gains were in clerical work and telephone operation.
Were any women professionals in 1920?
About 1% of doctors, 2% of lawyers, 0.1% of engineers. Women were ~25% of college undergraduates but professional schools actively excluded them.
What was the gender pay gap in 1920?
Women's wages were roughly 50-60% of men's for equivalent occupations — comparable to the 1900 and 1950 levels. The gap didn't begin meaningfully closing until after 1970.