Topic 4 - Social Changes - Social Security and Employment Flashcards
What was Lenin committed to in terms of employment?
Marxist theory of work criticised capitalism for not rewarding workers – Lenin committed to full employment for all able-bodied citizens in return for welfare and benefits
Civil War 1918-21 - Positives - What did the declaration of the Right of Tolling and Exploited People say?
1918 declaration of the Right of Tolling and Exploited people – abolished private ownership and introduced universal labour duty (capitalists couldn’t live off the work of others simply by owning property)
Civil War 1918-21 - Positives - What was introduced in Sep 1918?
Compulsory labour introduced in September 1918 – all able bodied men between ages 16-20 couldn’t refuse employment
Civil War 1918-21 - Positives - How many entitled to ration cards?
People in work entitled to work cards for rations and social benefits – 22 million entitled to ration cards
Civil War 1918-21 - Negatives - Unemployment rates
Unemployment increased to 100,000 by Oct 1918
Civil War 1918-21 - Negatives - How many metal and chemical workers were unemployed in March 1918?
March 1918 – 75% of chemical and metal workers in Petrograd were unemployed
Civil War 1918-21 - Negatives - What happened to urban pop?
Full employment unsustainable during CW – urban pop fell by 25%
Lenin - Urban workers - Positives - Benefits
- Great access to social benefits in urban areas – public transport, dining halls, laundry, creches, etc
Lenin - Urban workers - Positives - How many people did gov claim were being regularly fed in food halls?
Gov claimed 93% of people living in Moscow were fed regularly in food halls
Lenin - Urban workers - Positives - Insurance
Most comprehensive social insurance system in the world
Lenin - Rationing and collectivisation - Negatives - How was the pop divided in terms of rations?
- Pop divided into 6 groups – working class got highest proportion of food – middle classes recieved 25% of the amount that the working classes recieved
Lenin - Rationing and collectivisation - Negatives - Party member privileges
Party members received special privileges such as shops where they could get scarce goods
Lenin - Rationing and collectivisation - Negatives - What happened to the peasants?
Peasants subject to harsh grain requisitioning and violence of Cheka – also excluded from all benefits
Lenin - NEP - Negatives - What did unemployment rise to?
Benefits vanished under NEP – state capitalism brought unemployment – 5.5% in 1921 to 18% in 1924
Lenin - NEP - Negatives - What happened to women employment?
Mass women unemployment – in 1922 62.2% of unemployed people were women
Lenin - NEP Negatives - How many administrators sacked?
As War Communism ended and NEP started 225,000 administrators were sacked
Stalin - What was Stalin’s attitude towards employment and benefits?
Stalin used workers as an essential economic resource for industrialisation – aimed to increase productivity and wasn’t focused on benefits or care – control of the workforce meant control of the nation, less opposition, etc
Stalin - Industrial workers - Positives - What did rapid industrialisation lead to?
Rapid industrialisation led to full employment for men and women in fairly well paid urban jobs – attracted peasants to the cities
Stalin - Industrial workers - Positive - How much railway was built and what was the % in passenger traffic rise?
30,000 km of railways built in the 1930s – increased access to transport – led to 400% rise in passenger traffic
Stalin - Industrial workers - Positive - What happened to the industrial workforce from 1945-50?
Industrial workforce increased from 8 million to 12 million between 1950-45 due to returning soldiers
Stalin - Healthcare - Positive - What happened to infant mortality rate between 1940-50?
Infant mortality rate dropped 50% between 1940-50
Stalin - Healthcare - Positive - What happened to the number of doctors between 1947 and 1952?
Number of doctors increased by two thirds between 1947 and 1952
Stalin - Healthcare - Positive - Vaccines and disease?
Vaccines for common diseases such as typhus and malaria were made universally available from 1947 – malaria declined from 1949
Stalin - Healthcare - Negative - Why didn’t health of Soviet citizens improve?
Expansion of healthcare didn’t improve health of Soviet citizens due to poor housing, lack of food and poverty
Stalin - Healthcare - Negative - Party first policy
“Party first policy’ – in a city in Ukraine all members of the party vaccinated against typhoid yet there were still 10,000 cases of malaria amongst the workers in 1932 and 26,000 cases in 1933
Stalin - Collectivisation/planned economy - Negative - What did the planned economy fail to do?
Planned economy struggled to provide simple things like soap – canteens had to use rotting food and animal feed due to shortages
Stalin - Collectivisation/planned economy - Negative - Peasants
Peasants still excluded from benefits and struggled to find food
Stalin - Collectivisation/planned economy - Negative - How much wage did eating in communal canteens cost?
Eating in communal canteens cost half a month’s wage
Khrushchev - What did K aim for with benefits and housing?
Khrushchev focused on how much communism had given the people of the USSR - aimed at improving housing for all
Khrushchev - Health care - Positive - What happened to the healthcare budget?
Healthcare budget doubled from 1950 to 1959 (22 billion roubles to 44 billion)
Khrushchev - Health care - Positive - What happened to the death rate between 1950-1965?
Death rate decreased from 9.7 in 1950 to 7.3 in 1965
Khrushchev - Health care - Positive - What happened to infant mortality rate?
Infant mortality rate dropped from 81% in 1950 to 27% in 1965
Khrushchev - Health care - Positive - What happened to social benefits?
Reforms in 1961 also improved social benefits for farmers and workers – free lunches in schools, offices and factories as well as free public transport and full healthcare and pension rigths for farmers
Khrushchev - VLS - Peasants and women - Negative - What happened to peasants?
VLS failed to increase production of food so peasants still suffered
Khrushchev - VLS - Peasants and women - Negative - What happened to women?
- Of the 6400 women recruited in for the VLS in Aug 1958 less than 450 found work in well-paid jobs
- Women during VLS subject to abuse and rape
Khrushchev - Housing under K - Positive - What happened to urban housing between 1950 and 1965?
Between 1950 and 1965 the amount of urban housing more than doubled
Khrushchev - Housing under K - How was there an upgrade on Stalin?
New apartments allowed fam to live in whole block rather than single room apartments - over ten times bigger than Kommunalka houses under Stalin
