Many people lost jobs as a result of Prohibition. One day people were working at a brewery or saloon and the next day they were on the street without a job. Some people came back from the war in Europe to find that when they were gone their job had become illegal. Some people were forced to take lower paying jobs and some turned to crime.

People's stock in alcohol companies became worthless overnight. People who owned breweries were devastated. Many owners of breweries lost a family legacy of work and investments. It was hard for people who worked selling, shipping, producing, and bottling alcohol to get other jobs. “I used to work at a saloon,” was not a very good way to start a job interview. This is another effect that people did not think about when Prohibition was passed.