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The Aust Army Ordnance Corps (AAOC) in the World War 2 was one of the corps which supplied the Army with the materials it needed to live, move and fight. The Aust Army Service Corps (AASC) supplied the consumable items, such as food and fuel, while the Royal Aust Engineers (RAE) and Corps of Signals maintained supply branches to distribute the specialist engineer stores and signals equipment. AAOC supplied the ammunition as well as the non-consumable items for which the receiver was accountable. These include the weapons, munitions and vehicles as well as the tents, knives and forks, clothing and the spare parts to maintain the vehicles and equipment. AAOC did not generally undertake the distribution of their stores to units as the transport function was undertaken by AASC. Source: search.informit.org/doi/abs/10.3316/informit.454344815385...

The Women's Auxiliary Australian Air Force (WAAAF) was formed in March 1941 after considerable lobbying by women keen to serve and by the Chief of the Air Staff who wanted to release male personnel serving in Australia for service overseas. The WAAAF was the largest of the Second World War women's services. It was disbanded in December 1947. A new Australian women's air force was formed in July 1950 and in November became the Women's Royal Australian Air Force (WRAAF). The WRAAF was disbanded in the early 1980s and female personnel were absorbed into the mainstream RAAF. Australia's first female air force pilots graduated in 1988 and today, every role in the Air Force is open to women. Source: www.awm.gov.au/learn/understanding-military-structure/raa...

During World War Two, labor shortages saw the drafting of many women into occupations that had previously only been performed by men. There was a wide range of such occupations – everything from bus driving to assembling fighter aircraft! The excerpt below is from the July 1943 issue of Transportation Magazine and was written for male supervisors of women in the workforce who may not have previously been required to supervise female employees. Imagine offering these tips at induction for HR Managers today! Eleven tips on getting more efficiency out of women employees. There’s no longer any question whether transit companies should hire women for jobs formerly held by men. The draft and manpower shortage has settled that point. The important things now are to select the most efficient women available and how to use them to the best advantage. 1. Pick young married women. They usually have more of a sense of responsibility than their unmarried sisters, they’re less likely to be flirtatious, they need the work or they wouldn’t be doing it and they still have the pep and interest to work hard and to deal with the public efficiently. 2. When you have to use older women, try to get ones who have worked outside the home at some time in their lives. 3. General experience indicates that “husky” girls – those who are just a little on the heavy side – are more even-tempered and efficient than their underweight sisters. 4. Retain a physician to give each woman you hire a special physical examination – one covering female conditions. 5. Stress at the outset the importance of time – the fact that a minute or two lost here and there make serious inroads on schedules. Until this point is gotten across, service is likely to be slowed up. 6. Give the female employee a definite day-long schedule of duties so that they’ll keep busy without bothering the management for instructions every few minutes. 7. Whenever possible, let the inside employee change from one job to another at some time during the day. Women are inclined to be less nervous and happier with change. 8. Give every girl an adequate number of rest periods during the day. You have to make allowances for feminine physiology. A girl has more confidence and is more efficient if she can keep her hair tidied, apply fresh lipstick and wash her hands several times a day. 9. Be tactful when issuing instructions or in making criticisms. Women are often sensitive; they can’t shrug off harsh words the way men do. Never ridicule a woman – it breaks her spirit and cuts off her efficiency. 10. Be reasonably considerate about using strong language around women. Even though a girl’s husband or father may swear vociferously, she’ll grow to dislike a place of business where she hears too much of this. 11. Get enough size variety in operator’s uniforms so that each girl can have a proper fit. This point can’t be stressed too much in keeping women happy. Source: bcsv.org.au/vm/a-guide-to-hiring-women-in-1943/

Women were to be employed as ‘assistant conductresses’, under the supervision of male conductors, and so would not be burdened with too much responsibility. This image was underlined by their uniforms. While male conductors wore a military style uniform in blue serge paired with a peaked cap, the women's uniform was brown and consisted of jacket and skirt teamed with a forage cap. Furthermore, the badge numbers issued to conductresses were higher than ‘3700’, outside the normal range used for male employees – another point of differentiation. Rather than being referred to as a female conductor, the job title was deliberately feminized as ‘conductress’. Finally, frequent media reports regarding conductresses underlined both their efficiency and decorative appearance, especially the smartness of their uniforms, emphasizing their femininity. This approach defused accusations of masculinization of women, which was thought to be a characteristic of Communist ideology. This was particularly important, as influential conservative elements had an extreme fear of a Communist uprising. As a result, they were intensely suspicious of any initiative that was not aligned with their conceptions of civil society. Source: www.hawthorntramdepot.org.au/papers/conductressww2.htm