Betty McRae



NOTE: This article is written from an in-world perspective.

Betty McRae is a worker for Victory Munitions' munitions factory and also responsible for training the 'new girls' who join the factory's staff. She is played by Ali Liebert.

Biography
A tomboyish and skilled worker from the prairies, who thrives at the factory; their best worker, she is also in charge of training the Blue Shift's new girls. Because of this, she becomes the spokes-model for the factory in a war campaign film. Her hard, tough exterior masks her insecurity and feelings of being an outsider, due to her hidden sexuality (lesbian). Betty slowly becomes best friends with Kate, with whom she falls in love. After being rejected romantically by Kate, Betty becomes romantically involved with a soldier named Teresa. She also is of German ancestry.

Personality
She's nervous when it comes to dating and feels alienated from other women due to her struggle with accepting and need to hide her sexuality. However, she's a very confident worker, takes pride in what she does, and has empathy for those closest to her. She's skeptical of new workers that show too much confidence and/or those who don't perform up to the task. She has determination and drive, demonstrated in her dream to be independent and own her own house.

Kate Andrews
Kate Andrews is Betty's best friend and love interest. In Elements of Surprise, Betty kisses her but is rebuffed. When she discovers that Kate is going to leave the rooming house and return to her abusive father, Betty begs her not to go and confesses that she loves her. Kate remains as Betty's best friend and attempts to support Betty throughout her struggles.

Teresa
Teresa plays Betty's love interest, which is reciprocated with mutual feelings. Teresa is the lesbian soldier that Betty begins a relationship with in "Where There's Smoke". Their relationship continues through the series, during the times which Teresa is not on duty within the military.

Gladys Witham
Betty is initially hostile towards Gladys because of Gladys' wealth and naivety, accusing her of "slumming." Betty softens toward Gladys after James and Hazel's affair is revealed in How We Trust. Betty sometimes addresses Gladys as "Princess," which starts out as a disparaging moniker but gradually becomes more of a friendly nickname.

Lorna Corbett
Lorna Corbett is the floor matron for Blue Shift. She approves of Betty, viewing her as a model employee. After the screening of the newsreel in Bringing Up Bombshell, it is implied that Lorna is aware of Betty's sexuality.

Vera Burr
Vera is Betty's co-worker on Blue Shift. When Betty hears that Vera plans to quit her job and return to her family after being disfigured in an industrial accident, she visits Vera in the hospital to try and "talk some sense into her."

Edith McAllum
Edith is another of Betty's co-workers.

Hazel Macdougall
Hazel is Betty's co-worker on Blue Shift. She is on friendly terms with Betty until Betty advises her to transfer to Red Shift after it is revealed that Hazel had an affair with Gladys' fiance James.

Leon Riley
Leon Riley is an African-Canadian man who works in the storeroom at Victory Munitions. Betty is suspicious of his motives, partly because of his race, but mostly because she views him as a rival for Kate's affections.

Marco Moretti
Marco is the factory's materials controller and Betty's co-worker on Blue Shift. They appear to be on friendly terms, with Betty appearing visibly shaken after rumours circulate that Marco has been sent to an internment camp.

Ivan Buchinsky
Ivan is an engineer at Victory Munitions who works during the Blue Shift. He is of Ukrainian ancestry and is unable to serve in the armed forces because of asthma. He bonds with Betty and becomes her boyfriend. Betty later dumps him and he begins dating Kate.

Oma
Betty's grandmother (presumably on her mother's side) hailed from Germany, near Stuttgart. She moved to Canada in 1905, and was one of many German migrants to "break the plains." She died some years prior to the beginning of the series. She and Betty seem to have been close, as Betty is able to speak conversational German.

Thomas McRae
Thomas is one of Betty's brothers. He may be named for either a German or Scottish relative of the McRae family. Betty once had to administer first aid to him after he was injured on a hay rake.