The term referred to the American women who worked factory jobs as part of the war effort on the home front, where auto plants and other industrial facilities were converted into defense plants to manufacture airplanes, ships, and weapons. As World War II (1939–45) wore on, more and more men went overseas to fight, resulting in a shortage of civilian male workers. And so, women pitched in. However, at the end of the war, many of these women were displaced as the men returned home to their jobs and civilian life. Nevertheless, the contribution of all the Rosie the Riveters was instrumental to the war effort.