Demobilisation of the Australian military after World War II

The demobilisation of the Australian military after World War II involved discharging almost 600,000 men and women from the military, supporting their transition to civilian life and reducing the three armed services to peacetime strengths. Planning for the demobilisation process began in 1942 and thousands of servicemen and women were discharged in the last years of the war in response to shortages of labour in the domestic war economy. The general demobilisation of the military began in October 1945 and was completed in February 1947. The demobilisation process was largely successful, though some military personnel stationed in the South West Pacific complained that their repatriation to Australia was too slow.

The disposal of surplus military equipment took place at the same time as the size of the services was being reduced. The disposal process was managed to limit its economic impact. Most equipment was transferred to other government agencies, sold or destroyed by the end of 1949.

Planning for the demobilisation of the Australian military began at the end of 1942 when the Department of Post-War Reconstruction was formed. The department was involved with drawing up plans for determining veterans' entitlements and the assistance which would be provided to discharged personnel to help them settle into civilian life. This included planning the delivery of training, housing and ensuring that jobs were available. An important consideration was to ensure that civilian employment opportunities were created at an appropriate rate as the size of the military was reduced. In order to achieve this, it was decided to continue many wartime economic regulations such as price controls in order to limit inflation and direct resources to where the Australian Government believed they were most needed.

The Australian War Cabinet approved the Department of Post-War Reconstruction's proposed principles to govern demobilisation on 12 June 1944. The key element of these principles was that the order in which personnel would be demobilised was to be based on a points system, with service men and women being allocated points on the basis of their period of service, age, marital status and employment or training prospects. An extensive demobilisation plan was then developed by an inter-service committee following further consultation with trade unions, employers and returned servicemen. This plan was accepted as the basis for planning by the War Cabinet on 6 March 1945. The rate at which personnel were to be discharged was set at 3,000 a day for six days a week and was to be capable of being increased in the event of an emergency.

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