Romanov Roman E.,
Candidate of Historical Sciences, Institute of History of the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Novosibirsk, Russia, e-mail: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Archetype, Tradition, Modern: the Phenomenon of Stakhanov’s Work 1941–1945 (Based on the Materials of the Siberian Military Industry)
DOI: 10.31518/2618-9100-2020-1-6
The article is devoted to the study of the phenomenon of Stakhanov’s labor in the wartime by the example of the “defense industry” of the Siberian rear. The movement of the leading workers of production is considered as a combination of motivational factors – remuneration, incitement and compulsion, enshrined in the state strategies and practices of stimulating the working class. The latter were seated in archetypal, traditional, modern “layers” of human culture and focused on various types of work motivation. In the summer of 1941 – autumn of 1942 the Stakhanov movement, was dominated by strategies which were based on the archetype of the hero, the tradition of collectivism, and acted with the help of Patriotic propaganda. The strategy based on the “Taylor system” was introduced using the incentive forms of payment. The strategy, based on the struggle for survival, was implemented with the help of supplementary food rations of the best workers. The heroic and collectivist types of labor motivation prevailed among the Stakhanovites and shockworkers (mostly young people) in the initial period of the war. However, these honorary titles were earned by an absolute minority of workers, which was due to the weakness of material incentives. In the autumn of 1942 – spring of 1945 the main role in the development of the Stakhanov movement was played by strategies that combined the archetype of the hero and the struggle for survival. They provided for the preferential life support of shockworkers who had a prestigious status. At the same time strategies based on the “Taylor system” as well as a combination of the hero archetype and the tradition of collectivism continued to be applied. The heroic, collectivist, and consumer types of labor motivation dominated among the Stakhanovists and shockworkers during periods of radical turn and at the end of the war. These honorary titles were earned by the absolute majority of workers, which was the result of increased material and moral incentives. It is concluded that in the system of stimulating Stakhanov’s labor in 1941–1945 its archetypal and traditional elements prevailed over the modern ones. In Siberia this situation developed under the conditions of creation and development of the military industry on the basis of evacuated enterprises. The cultivation of heroic, collectivist and consumer types of labor motivation among the workers was one of the factors of the economic victory of the USSR over Nazi Germany.
Publishing: 28/02/2020
How to cite: Romanov R.E. Archetype, Tradition, Modern: the Phenomenon of Stakhanov’s Work 1941–1945 (Based on the Materials of the Siberian Military Industry) // Historical Courier, 2020, No. 1 (9), pp. 69–80. [Available online:] http://istkurier.ru/data/2020/ISTKURIER-2020-1-06.pdf
Links: Issue 1 2020
Keywords: Great Patriotic War; Siberian rear; defense industry; Stakhanov labor; stimulating strategies; types of labor motivation