Family Allowance Application Form (March 28, 1945)

Thanks to the activism of contemporary feminists, the Liberal federal government of William Lyon Mackenzie King introduced the Family Allowance program in 1945. It was hoped the initiative would garner support from workers and families in Quebec. At the provincial level, the Duplessis government, the Catholic Church and the Bloc populaire du Québec called for a boycott of the program on the grounds that it undermined “paternal authority.” As a result, the first Family Allowance application forms were issued in English, like this version published in The Globe and Mail on March 17, 1945.

Although some conservative groups spoke out against payments being issued directly to mothers, the benefits of this approach were obvious in terms of increasing maternal independence. Initially, mothers struggled to manage family finances because Family Allowance cheques were issued in the father’s name. In 1952, mothers gained the right to receive Family Allowance benefits directly.