Mussolini claimed he would create class harmony.

During 1922-1925, male industrial workers benefited from a drop in unemployment and an
improvement in living standards (although this was mainly the result of the general economic
revival in Europe). Throughout 1925-26, however, workers lost their independent trade
unions and their right to strike. Instead of ending class conflict, Mussolini's fascist state
merely suppressed the ability of workers to defend their interests.As the economy began to
decline in the second half of the 1920s, employers were able to end the eight-hour day and
extend the working week. At the same time, the government cut wages; between 1925 and
1938, the level of real wages dropped by over 10%. As a result, by 1939, working-class
standards of living had declined significantly. Some social welfare legislation was passed,
including old age pensions, and unemployment and health insurance, but this social wage
did not make up for the decline in real wages and working conditions.
The lower-middle classes, who formed the backbone of the Fascist Party, were affected in
different ways. Many small businesses were hit quite hard by the Depression as well as by
Mussolini’s economic policies. However, those who became part of the state bureaucracy or
the Fascist Party experienced relative prosperity, with good wages and considerable extra
benefits.
The people who gained the most from the fascist corporate state were the industrialists and
landowners. Even during the Depression, large firms benefited in many ways - either from
government contracts or through the IRI, which gave financial assistance and also helped in
the creation of huge monopolies. Large landowners also benefited: during the Depression,
government restrictions on migration kept unemployment high in rural areas, and this meant
that landowners could cut wages. Agricultural wages were reduced by over 30% during the
1930s. There was also no attempt to redistribute land, as had been intended by a law
passed in 1922. By 1930, 0.5% of the population owned 42% of the land, while 87% of the
rural population owned only 13%.
Women
Women particularly suffered under fascism. The Battle for Births, for example, stressed the
importance of a woman’s traditional role as housewife and mother. Launched by Mussolini in
1927, this campaign aimed to increase the Italian population from 40 million to 60 million by
1957. From this, Mussolini planned to create a large army that would help expand Italy’s
empire.
The fascist state offered maternity benefits and awarded prizes to women who had the most
children during their lives. Taxation policy was also used to encourage large families -
couples with 6 or more children paid no taxes at all. In 1933, laws were imposed against
abortion and divorce, and same-sex relations were outlawed. The state also tried to exclude
women from paid employment. In 1933, the government announced that only 10% of state
jobs should be held by women; in 1938, this rule was extended to many private firms.
For all Mussolini’s grand plans, though, these government policies largely failed. The
number of births actually dropped throughout the 1930s, while nearly one-third of Italy’s paid