★ New Industrial Plans, Stakhanovite Movement and Life in NICs

Question 1

★ Why did Stalin start the Five Year Plans?

Answer 1

★ Transform the Soviet Union into a great industrial power
★ Bring the Soviet Union in line with other leading nations
★ Thought the route to Socialism was through industrialisation
★ Attempt by Stalin to create a war economy in preparation with conflict with other countrines in the West
★ Capitalise on the Great Depression in the West
★

Question 2

★ How were the FYPs organised?

Answer 2

★ The party, acting through the government, set priorities for the plans and the targets for key industries (People’s Commissariat)
★ Gosplan worked out all the figures and quotas for industries

Question 3

★ Who was the Commissariat for Heavy Industry?

Answer 3

★ Sergo Ordzhonikidze

Question 4

★ What did the Regional Administrators do?

Answer 4

★ Took care of more general output targets and instructions about activies and resource allocations

Question 5

★ Who was in charge of meeting targets?

Answer 5

★ Managers

Question 6

★ What did the First FYP focus on?

Answer 6

★ Emphasis on Heavy Industry (Coal, Oil)
★ 80% of investment went into it
★ 1928-1932
★ 1500 new enterprises

Question 7

★ Successes of the First FYP?

Answer 7

★ Electricity, steel and iron all increased

Question 8

★ Weaknesses of the First FYP?

Answer 8

★ Consumer industries neglected
★ Chemical targets not met
★ Workers changed jobs frequenty = instability

Question 9

★ What did the Second FYP focus on?

Answer 9

★ 1933 - 1937
★ Still focussed on Heavy Industry but more about Communications (ex. railways)
★ 4,500 new enterprises open

Question 10

★ Successes of Second FYP?

Answer 10

★ By 1937, Soviet Union self sufficient in machine making and metal-working
★ Moscow Metro in 1935
★ Volga Canal in 1937
★ Dnieprostroi Dam - Largest dam in Europe

Question 11

★ Weaknesses of Second FYP?

Answer 11

★ Consumer goods neglected
★ Oil not as advanced as first hoped

Question 12

★ What did the Third FYP focus on?

Answer 12

★ Disrupted due to WW2
★ Heavy industry focus (armaments)
★ Coincided with purges
★ Aimed to transition to communism with this plan

Question 13

★ Successes of Third FYP?

Answer 13

★ Defence and armaments increased
★ Heavy industry grew

Question 14

★ Weaknesses of Third FYP?

Answer 14

★ Steel, oil and consumer goods suffered
★ Factories ran short of raw materials

Question 15

★ What is an example of an NIC?

Answer 15

★ Magnitogorsk, produced steel and iron

Question 16

★ What are some examples of New Industrial Projects?

Answer 16

★ Dneiprostroi Dam = Largest hydro-electric power station, became the largest Soviet power plant at the time

★ Moscow-Volga Canal = Connects the Muskva and Volga River, had a srtatue of Lenin, was built by prisoners, 22,000 died

★ Moscow Metro = Underground railway station

★ Turksib Railway = Connected Central Asia to Siberia, built by nearly 50,000 workers, designed to create a working class in the steppes of Central Asia

Question 17

★ What role do foreigners play in NICS?

Answer 17

★ Helped bring managerial and technical skills to the USSR
★ Ex. Henry Ford
★ Moscow Metro used engineers from Britain, though they were arrested by Secret Police

Question 18

★ Who was Alexei Stakhanov?

Answer 18

★ Coal miner who allegedly cut 102 tonnes of coal in 5 hours and 45 minutes
★ Declared a Soviet hero
★ However, got help from other workers and was largely forged

Question 19

★ What was the role of the managers?

Answer 19

★ Fulfill Quotas, could be imprisoned or executed if they failed to fulfill quotas
★ From 1936, had to pay for their own fuel, raw materials and labour
★ Had to enforce state regulations in the workplace which made them unpopular with workers
★ Could be accused of wrecking by Stakhavonites by saying they didn’t give them good supplies or equipment
★ Faced labour shortages

Question 20

★ Role of Workers?

Answer 20

★ Arriving late or missing work was punished with dismissal, eviction and a loss of benefits
★ Strikes were illegal and leaving a job without permission was a criminal offence
★ 1931 - Wage differentials as an incentive to work harder
★ While wages did increase, they were still lower in 1937 than they had been in 1928
★ Forced labour given to prisoners

Question 21

★ What was the role of Female Workers?

Answer 21

★ Despite Communist doctrines of equality, female workers were largely concentrated in the lowest paid jobs requiring the least skills ex. textiles
★ By 1935, Women constituted 42% of all industrial workers
★ Desperate attempts from factory managers made them employ their wives and daughters
★ Women earned 40% less than their male counterparts

Question 22

★ How did the party respond to its labour problems?

Answer 22

★ Wage Incentives: To stop workers flitting from job-to-job, managers could

★ Piece Work: Payment according to the pieces of work completed became common

★ Training: A massive training programme was brought into being. However was poor and many trainees were rushed

★ Tough measures: Dismissal, eviction, loss of benefits

★ Forced labour: 300,000 prisoners worked on the Baltic-White Sea Canal, many of them kulaks that were arrested in the collectivisation drive

★ Propaganda: Shock-brigade campaigns and Socialist competitions