Women Working
"Enable every woman who can work to take her place on the labour front, under the principle of equal pay for equal work." - Mao Zedong
As a part of Mao's feminist reforms allowed and even encouraged women to work. He gave Chinese women an equal footing in the men's world of work with equal pay.
"In agricultural production our fundamental task is to adjust the use of labour power in an organized way and to encourage women to do farm work."
- "Our Economic Policy" (1934), Mao Zedong
Mao gave many speeches encouraging women to work and there were also PRC propaganda posters that encouraged it.
"It has become necessary to arouse the great mass of women who did not work in the fields before to take their place on the labour front... China’s women are a vast reserve of labour power. This reserve should be tapped in the struggle to build a great socialist country."
-“Solving the Labour Shortage by Arousing the Women to Join in Production” (1955), Mao Zedong
-“Solving the Labour Shortage by Arousing the Women to Join in Production” (1955), Mao Zedong
To build the "great socialist country" that Mao spoke of, women had to work also otherwise the nation would only reach half it's potential if half of it's citizens worked.