Patriarchy and paternalism on a Hungarian collective farm

Abstract

ABSTRACT The article considers the situation of women in a single Hungarian collective farm - the Red Flag collective farm - in the mid-1970s on the basis of materials collected and interviews made at the time. It considers their work situation, their role in management, their contribution to the cooperative's leadership, and the impact of Hungary's new woman policy of the 1970s. Providing employment for women was a central goal of the farm leadership, but women were concentrated in less skilled jobs and 'female' professions. A few made it to middle management positions, but none got to the top, although they were better represented in party positions. Their contribution to household farming was was determining yet difficult to quantify.