Notes for Edexcel International A Level history option 2c- russia 1917-95, provides notes, information and details about everything in the history IAL specification, the student who wrote these notes received 95/100 UMS points in the paper, provides essay plans and is organised by part
1) SOCIAL BENEFITS- 1917-53
SUMMARY- when the communist party came into power in 1917- they believed in social
developments to transform soviet society- done by introducing policies and changing values
SOVIET VALUES SUCH AS- social security, adequate housing, employment,removal of
poverty– aim was to meet populations needs to become a ‘soviet state’ and gain peoples
support
- Post stalins death- reduction of terror on population to effectively control the public-
the party was in favour of using more ‘traditional values’ to stabilise gov
- There was a growth in education- to modernise society & economy → can be
argued that the radical changes in gov would give the people what they
needed
TIMELINE OF SOCIAL SECURITY PROVISION
- 1918 – Labour exchanges set up
- 1930 – Government announces full employment achieved
- 1956 – Minimum wage introduced, pension provision expanded
- 1956-65 – Expansion of the housing programmed
- 1957 – Reduction in the working week
- 1966 – Regular wages introduced for collective farmers
- 1974 – Passport system extended to the rural population
CHANGES IN THE LABOUR MARKET UNDER LENIN
During civil war- collapse of industry- drift of factory workers into the countryside
since food supplies were more reliable there → factories experiencing lack of
labour
^ led to decree issued stating unemployed men would take any work given to them
- 1918- labour conscription during C.W
- C.W led to- demobilisation due to increased focus on the red army supplies rather
than ordinary citizens- led to red army soldiers returning to ordinary life, lack of
supplies and resources- 1926- unemployment levels over a million
- NEP introduced- skilled workers enjoyed rising wages & job security- and
use of arteli→ there were benefits for the working class
Arteli- group of people who offered services & got paid as a group- usually in trade→
led by older members who distributed pay either by age or length of
beard→ similar to traditional peasant groups but gov saw them as a
‘backwards org’
- 1929- ‘shock brigades’- enthusiastic young communists working on construction
projects- vital to system .
INDUSTRIALISATION AND FULL EMPLOYMENT
5 year plan effective in pushing industrialisation rather than creating employment- 1930-
soviet gov announced it was the first country to reach full urban employment
, - 1928-1937- hired workers rose from 11.6million to 27 million
- Targets made b y gov led to factories using every possible labour source →
lack of tech put more pressure on manual labour → led to increased rural-
urban migration → however still had labour shortages in 1932
IMPACT OF FULL EMPLOYMENT ON WORKERS
● old industrial workers & new peasant recruits created divisions in workplace -
skilled workers tried to protect their position by discriminating newcomers.
● Restrictions on trade unions- not allowed to negotiate with managers to improve
conditions. Gov didnt care for health & safety
● Oct 1930- unemployment cancelled due to full employment- Trade unions now acting
as providers of social insurance, dealing with labour issues out of their own funds.
● Increased job creation but low productivity- 1927- average Soviet worker
produced half of an average British worker- 5 year plan- Productivity increased due
to machinery but still behind west- To meet production targets- ’uninterrupted
work’- use of day and night shifts so machines would operate 24/7- demotivating
industrial workers- work was hard, repetitive and unchallenging.
● Labour shortages- Workers unhappy & constantly changed their job → 1932-
gov issued a passport system-internal passport needed to change jobs &
food rations distributed in workplace→ policies made to keep workers
where they were needed→ partly successful- 1937- 30% of all urban workers
changed their job in each quarter of the year.
ATTEMPTS TO INCREASE PRODUCTIVITY
● 1931- wage differences between skilled and unskilled workers increased- gov
wanted to reward skilled workers to prevent moving-1932- better rations & bonuses,
1934- use of piecework rates increased- pleased the skilled workers since they
can gain higher wages- But higher wages only a small incentive since there
was so little in the shops to buy.
● gov used honours and medals to motivate the workforce- workers encouraged to
work like the hero Alexei Stakhanov (coal miner from Donbass who could mine 15
times the average amount of coal)- Komsomol enthusiasts used by gov to form
‘shock brigades- for socialist values in the workforce & promote
production→ rewards for model workers: a new flat, bigger rations; slackers were
held up to ridicule.
NEGS OF THESE ATTEMPTS
● restrictions on workers changing jobs led to an increase in
absenteeism→1931- Harsh punishments introduced for absenteeism in key
industries but it remained-1939- absenteeism a criminal offence- but due to
short labour the measures werent always applied→ Slave labour from
labour camps had to be used to meet the need for workers.
● pressure on labour increased during WW2- little let-up after 1945- During war,
women were employed due to lack of labour, Demobilization of soldiers in 1945-
men returned to the workforce, but not where they were needed- Prisoners of
war used as forced labour→ increasing numbers in the Gulag→ 1945-53-
Labour camp inmates rose- 1.5 million-2.5 million
, HOUSING
Soviet gov slow in housing provision initially- 1917- bolsheviks began to confiscate large
houses from the rich- principle of allocating housing to need ambushed by values to give
houses based on rank in communist party- reality was there wasnt enough houses
- Under 5 year plan- growth in towns & industrial centers- lack of housing to due lack
of resources- established cities grew in population- moscow pop- 1929-1936-
2.2mil-4.1mil, leningrad pop- 1926-1939- 1.6million-3.4 million
- Due to focus on industrialisation- gov lacked focus on increasing housing despite
growing population- workers sleeping in tents or huts
- 1930’s- conditions improved- apartment blocks built when able to- looked the same
and included elements to encourage communism- eg communal kitchens- water,
heaters only given to workers committed to plan
- 1936- 6% rented units had more than one room- 24% had only part of a room,
25% lived in dormitories
- Improvements in rural housing even slower to materialise
- WW2- damages to property led to an increased lack of housing- stalingrad lost 90%
of housing, leningrad lost ⅓ of the city by 1944
^ KEY BATTLES THAT CAUSED THESE DAMAGES:
Battle of stalingrad- 1942-43- hitlers attempt of taking over river volga and targeted
stalingrad- damage of german air raids- soviet forces using tanks and arms- jan 1934
germany surrenders- over 1mil soviet soldiers dead- turning point of war- became
symbol of soviet strength
Siege of leningrad- aug 1941- jan 1944- german army sieged the area- lack of supplied
able to reach city, most population emigrated in advance- lake of north leningrad froze- lack
of resources, temp reached -40 degrees- nearly 1million people dead in siege- became a
symbol of soviet endurance
SOCIAL BENEFITS
Social benefits usually provided by trade unions- despite their lack of funds and political
power
^ THEY PROVIDED: Sporting facilities, meetings, film, 2 week paid holidays→
usually taken on cheap resorts, Sick pay
HEALTH CARE BENEFITS
Health care benefits were provided by gov to entire population despite
limited resources→ effective when containing epidemics
- 1921- cholera epidemic- compulsory vaccination programme implaced to stop
spread
- 1918-22- lice spread typhus- 6million deaths- lenin launched program to eradicate
spread- ‘Either lice will defeat socialism or socialism will defeat lice.
- 1917 rev- doctors fled- led to increased gov funding towards training- 1928-1940
number of hospital beds- rose from 24700 to 155,000 - 791,000 in 1939→
quantity didnt mean quality but situations improved
- Sanitation also prioritised- increased use of sanitary inspectors in hospitals
- all medicines had to be paid for- albeit at a cheap, subsidized rate- largely due to
increased women into med
1952-Soviet worker likely to be employed, housed and in receipt of basic social
services- Life was harsh & lack of provision in rural areas- ‘socialist utopia’ not yet achieved
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