Industrial and social developments in towns and cities Flashcards
Gosplan; the organisation, aims and results of the first three Five Year Plans; new industrial centres and projects; the involvement of foreign companies; the working and living conditions of managers, workers and women; Stakhanovites; the success of the Five Year Plans
what was Gosplan
the state planning agency which was given the responsibility for drawing up the plan and establishing the output targets for every economic enterprise in accordance with party directives
why were there issues for Gosplan
communist government made the overall decisions of what should be produced and when
regional party leaders were competing for resources
they had to contend with and were often overruled by veshenka
lacked reliable info e.g. price of imports and exports
corruption and faulty reporting as failure to achieve a target was a criminal offense so those administering the plans ensured statistics showed improvements
why were the FYP targets so high
intended to force managers and workers to devote maximum effort
aims of the first FYP
increase production 300%
focus on development of heavy industry
boost electricity 600%
double output of light industry e.g. chemicals
Aims of the second FYP
continue development of heavy industry
boost light industry e.g. chemical electricals and consumer goods
develop communications and engineering
successes of the second FYP
electricity production expanded rapidly transport and communication grew rapidly
failures of the second FYP
consumer goods industries were still lagging there was growth but not enough
oil production did not make the expected advances
emphasis on quantity over quality “gigantomania”
aims of the third FYP
emphasis on development of heavy industry
rapid rearmament
complete transition to communism
successes of the third FYP
heavy industry continued to grow
spending doubled 1938-1940 on armaments so the industry grew
failures of the third FYP
diversion of resources to armaments meant steel production stagnated and oil failed to meet targets causing a fuel crisis
many factories ran short on materials
consumer goods were neglected
purges created a shortage of managers, specialists and technicians
German invasion in 1941 ended the plan early
consumer industries ignored
when was the first FYP
oct 1928
dec 1932
when was the second FYP
jan 1933
dec 1937
when was the third FYP
jan 1938
june 1941
what was Magnitogorsk
massive steel plant
150,000 people
in the Urals
what was the Dniepostroi dam
opened in 1932
largest hydroelectric power station
generated 560 MW
who was Aleksei Stakhanov
coal miner who cut 102 tonnes of coal in 1935
declared soviet hero
given a large bonus and honorary awards
used as propaganda for hard work and selfless sacrifice for the regime
who were Stakhanovites
inspired by Aleksei Stakhanov tried to break records e.g. 2 volumes of broken records by December 1935
received benefits for achievements
forced managers into supporting workers to increase productivity
benefits of being a manager
high salaries
status as part of the industrial elite
bonuses that could be as much as 40% of salary if did better than expected
ways workers benefitted
more technical education gave some workers valuable skills, they could advance to higher positions and received higher wages when wage differentials were introduced in
those who exceeded targets were rewarded with better housing and higher pay
conditions for women in the workforce
10 million women entered the workforce
paid less and harder to gain advancement e.g. 50-60% of doctors were women but only 4 female head doctors in hospitals
living conditions
sanitation was poor
workers lived in overcrowded barracks
long queues for basic goods
How were the targets of the five year plans backed
backed by law so failure to meet targets could be treated as a criminal offence
What was the peoples commissariats role in the FYPs
worked out the more detailed plans for different regions and the enterprises under their control
what were the 4 main commissariats in the FYPs
heavy industry
light industry
timber
food