Candace Stevens October 31, 2014
American History II Research Paper
The New Deal Policies
Franklin Roosevelt served the longest tenure as President in American History from
March 1933 to April 1945, and he may possibly done more in those twelve years than any of his
predecessors to change the American society and politics. Americans elected Roosevelt in 1932
because they believed that he would be able to combat the Great Depression more than President
Herbert Hoover. Roosevelt promised the company a “New Deal” which he was able to deliver
by implementing a variety of policies. He was able to pull the United States away from the edge
of social and economic disaster and lay a foundation for future stability and prosperity
[ CITATION Wil \l 1033 ]. The New Deal was also able to redefine the meaning of American
liberalism by creating a powerful national bureaucracy. For the first time, Americans were able
to experience the federal government as part of their everyday lives through payments from
Social Security, farm loans, mortgage guarantees, and relief work [ CITATION Hen07 \l 1033 ].
With the New Deal, Roosevelt was able to find many ways to help workers with their
union and wage problems. In 1935 the federal government was able to guarantee unions the
right to organize and bargain collectively, and in 1938 the Fair Labor Standards Act established a
mechanism for putting a floor under employees’ wages and a ceiling on the hours that continues
to this day [ CITATION Wil \l 1033 ]. Congress also passed a bill that would pay commodity
farmers, those who produced things such as wheat, tobacco, dairy products, and corn, to leave
their fields fallow. This would help to end agricultural surpluses and to boost prices. The
National Industrial Recovery Act was able to suspend some antitrust laws and establish a
federally funded Public Works Administration. In the second New Deal, President Roosevelt
was able to create the Works Progress Administration which provided jobs to the unemployed.
They were not allowed to compete with the private industry, so their focus remained on building
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Candace Stevens October 31, 2014
American History II Research Paper
things such as post offices, bridges, and parks. The WPA was also able to give work to artists,
writers, and directors. In 1935, the National Labor Relations Act, also known as the Wagner Act,
created the National Labor Relations Board to help supervise union elections and to prevent
businesses from treating their employees unfairly [ CITATION His \l 1033 ]. The dramatic
growth in labor during the 1030’s represented one of the most important social and economic
changed of the decade [ CITATION Pre \l 1033 ]. Organized labor won the battle for
recognition, seniority systems, grievance procedures, and higher wages. The situation of
Mexican Americans also improved. New Deal initiatives supporting the labor unions indirectly
encouraged the acculturation of Mexican immigrants [ CITATION Hen07 \l 1033 ].
Eleanor Roosevelt, wife of President Franklin Roosevelt, worked to increase women’s
