Explain how the situation Canadian businesses found themselves in after the stock market crash led the government to intervene in the 1930s. Answer the question, providing details and establishing connections between them. The situation Canadian businesses found themselves in after the stock market crash. The employment situation. ● A government intervention during the 1930s. ● ● The Great Depression For a good part of the 1920s, the Canadian economy was in full swing. The end of the First World War and the arrival of large numbers of immigrants had created a flourishing domestic market. However, signs of trouble were emerging. First, industries were producing more than the market could absorb, which created a state of overproduction. Second, credit was more readily available, which enabled some people to consume more than they could afford; some people even used borrowed money for stock market speculation, hoping that increasing stock prices would be a quick way to earn a lot of money to pay back their loans. The economic landscape was full of speculative bubbles and blind faith in the capitalist system. The stock market crash of 1929 was caused by a massive sell-off of stocks by people who saw declining prices and declining production as a sign of bad things to come. Everybody else piled on and a good chunk of the stock market was wiped out on "Black Thursday", October 24th. The onset of the crisis put a stop to consumer activity in the United States, causing a drop in US imports. Canada depended heavily on the US market. Between 1929 and 1933, manufacturing output plummeted which led to a decline in demand for Canadian raw materials. Québec's production of raw materials dropped more than 50 percent during this period. Many Canadian companies went bankrupt, which left thousands of workers out of a job, and unemployment reached an all-time high of 30 percent. Those who managed to keep their jobs saw their salaries drop dramatically. Unable to pay rent, many tenants ended up on the streets. Diseases spread due to malnutrition. People from small towns flocked to Montréal, hoping to find jobs or charity in the big city. Church-run charitable organizations were quickly overwhelmed. To assist those in need, the Québec government established the first social assistance programs, which were provided as relief vouchers that could be exchanged for food, coal, and clothing. Québec also encouraged a "return to the land" policy of further colonization of the regions. Most colonizers were poorly prepared and given land that was unsuitable for cultivation. Many of them ended up returning to the city. The federal government collaborated with provincial and municipal governments to create public works projects to generate jobs. Workers were paid around 35 cents per hour to build parks, bridges and roads. The Bank of Canada, the country's first central bank, was created in 1935 to regulate the nation's monetary policy and financial system. The severe poverty brought about by the Great Depression drew attention to the state's responsibility for the well-being of its citizens. The federal and the provincial governments began to recognize that it would need to take more control over areas previously run by churches, such as helping those in need. This marked the beginning of the welfare state. This is the beginning of increase government intervention. Despite the various efforts from all levels of government during the 1930s, it was the Second World War that revived the economy and ended the Great Depression.¹

Explain how the situation Canadian businesses found themselves in after the stock market crash led the government to intervene in the 1930s. Answer the question, providing details and establishing connections between them. The situation Canadian businesses found themselves in after the stock market crash. The employment situation. ● A government intervention during the 1930s. ● ● The Great Depression For a good part of the 1920s, the Canadian economy was in full swing. The end of the First World War and the arrival of large numbers of immigrants had created a flourishing domestic market. However, signs of trouble were emerging. First, industries were producing more than the market could absorb, which created a state of overproduction. Second, credit was more readily available, which enabled some people to consume more than they could afford; some people even used borrowed money for stock market speculation, hoping that increasing stock prices would be a quick way to earn a lot of money to pay back their loans. The economic landscape was full of speculative bubbles and blind faith in the capitalist system. The stock market crash of 1929 was caused by a massive sell-off of stocks by people who saw declining prices and declining production as a sign of bad things to come. Everybody else piled on and a good chunk of the stock market was wiped out on "Black Thursday", October 24th. The onset of the crisis put a stop to consumer activity in the United States, causing a drop in US imports. Canada depended heavily on the US market. Between 1929 and 1933, manufacturing output plummeted which led to a decline in demand for Canadian raw materials. Québec's production of raw materials dropped more than 50 percent during this period. Many Canadian companies went bankrupt, which left thousands of workers out of a job, and unemployment reached an all-time high of 30 percent. Those who managed to keep their jobs saw their salaries drop dramatically. Unable to pay rent, many tenants ended up on the streets. Diseases spread due to malnutrition. People from small towns flocked to Montréal, hoping to find jobs or charity in the big city. Church-run charitable organizations were quickly overwhelmed. To assist those in need, the Québec government established the first social assistance programs, which were provided as relief vouchers that could be exchanged for food, coal, and clothing. Québec also encouraged a "return to the land" policy of further colonization of the regions. Most colonizers were poorly prepared and given land that was unsuitable for cultivation. Many of them ended up returning to the city. The federal government collaborated with provincial and municipal governments to create public works projects to generate jobs. Workers were paid around 35 cents per hour to build parks, bridges and roads. The Bank of Canada, the country's first central bank, was created in 1935 to regulate the nation's monetary policy and financial system. The severe poverty brought about by the Great Depression drew attention to the state's responsibility for the well-being of its citizens. The federal and the provincial governments began to recognize that it would need to take more control over areas previously run by churches, such as helping those in need. This marked the beginning of the welfare state. This is the beginning of increase government intervention. Despite the various efforts from all levels of government during the 1930s, it was the Second World War that revived the economy and ended the Great Depression.¹