Focusing on a seldom-considered measure of employment—hours worked—enables a better understanding of the U.S. economy during the Great Depression and World War II. This approach not only proves that the New Deal failed to bring about full economic recovery, but also suggests that the “miraculous” wartime increase in real output has been greatly exaggerated.
A Revealing Window on the U.S. Economy in Depression and War
Hours Worked, 1929–1950
By Robert Higgs
This article
appeared in
the Summer 2009 issue of The Independent Review.
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(10 pages)
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