Russa 2.1 Towards a command economy

When was the Decree on Workers' Control? What did it do?

November 1917

Factories were put under the control of elected committees of workers

What were the consequences of workers' control?

Workers' Committees voted to give themselves large pay rises and reduced working hours

Production went down

When was Vesenkha set up? What did it do?

Supreme Soviet of the National Economy

December 1917

It organised industry

When were large industries nationalised? What happened to workers' control?

From Dec 1917 to June 1918

No more workers' control - Sovnarkom appointed managers to control the factories

What were the features of War Communism?

Grain requisitioning

Rationing

Nationalisation of all industry

Labour discipline

Abolition of private trading

Conscription

What was the size of the industrial workforce in 1917 vs in 1922?

1917 - 3 million workers

1922 - 1.2 million workers

People moved to the countryside to find food

When was work made compulsory for all able-bodied individuals between 16 and 50 years of age?

Autumn 1918

What was the conclusion of a summer 1920 Bolshevik report?

The Bolsheviks had exhausted stockpiles of raw materials from pre-1917 Russia

How much grain was requisitioned between 1920 and 1921?

6 million tons of grain

What caused the famine in 1921-22? How many people died?

Causes: 1921 drought, grain requisitioning

5 million died

What percentage of people's food came from the black market during War Communism?

60%

When was the NEP introduced?

March 1921 at the Tenth Party Congress

What were the features of the NEP?

Grain requisitioning replaced with taxation

Privatisation of small scale industry (less than 20 employees)

Legalisation of private trading, especially in agriculture

Reintroduction of currency for paying wages

What was the scissors crisis?

Agriculture recovered quickly, low prices for grain

Industry recovered slowly, high prices for machinery / industrial goods

Peasants couldn't afford machinery, no incentive to grow and sell more grain

How was the scissors crisis resolved?

December 1923 - government started regulating prices (Maximum Prices (Price Ceilings):

These are set to prevent prices from rising above a certain level, often to make goods more affordable)

How much steel was produced in 1913 vs in 1921 vs in 1926?

1913 - 4.2 million tons

1921 - 0.2 million tons

1926 - 3.1 million tons

What was the grain harvest in 1913 vs in 1921 vs in 1926?

1913 - 80 million tons

1921 - 38 million tons

1926 - 77 million tons