Title: Did New Deal Programs Help End the Great Depression? - HISTORY
Headings: Did New Deal Programs Help End the Great Depression?
Did New Deal Programs Help End the Great Depression?
Many New Deal programs established critical economic safeguards.
The modern labor movement was born out of New Deal initiatives.
But New Deal programs alone weren’t enough to end the Great Depression.
FACT CHECK: We strive for accuracy and fairness. But if you see something that doesn't look right, click here to contact us! HISTORY reviews and updates its content regularly to ensure it is complete and accurate.
SIGN UP FOR MORE HISTORY!

Content: It really could be argued World War II, which ultimately lowered unemployment and increased GNP through weapons production really played a much bigger role,” Lichtenstein says. Still, as Dr. Lichtenstein notes, several programs created through the New Deal did have a lasting positive impact on the U.S. economy which was flagging throughout the 1930s, among them the Social Security Act, which provided income for the elderly, disabled and children of poor families. The Glass-Steagall Act of 1933 established the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, which effectively insured the savings of Americans in the event of a bank failure, which was all too common at the time. The modern labor movement was born out of New Deal initiatives. In addition, Lichtenstein notes, the National Industrial Recovery Act of 1933 was enacted to foster “fair competition” through the fixing of prices and wages and the establishment of production quotas, among other measures. The subsequent National Labor Relations Act of 1935 allowed for collective bargaining and essentially led to the development of the labor movement in the United States, which protected workers’ rights and wages. But New Deal programs alone weren’t enough to end the Great Depression. According to Linda Gordon, professor of history at New York University, the Works Progress Administration, created in 1935, also had a positive impact by employing more than 8 million Americans in building projects ranging from bridges and airports to parks and schools. Such programs certainly helped end the Great Depression, “but were insufficient [because] the amount of government funds for stimulus wasn’t large enough,” she notes. “ Only World War II, with its demands for massive war production, which created lots of jobs, ended the Depression.”