Social Infrastructure of the Enterprise as the Main Factor of Workers’ Life Support During the War Years (1941–1945)

Abstract

Introduction. The functioning of the social infrastructure of industrial enterprises of the Soviet rear is of research interest to understand the sources of the victory of the USSR in the Great Patriotic War. Methods and Materials. The source base of the study is represented by documents from the central and local archives of the Russian Federation and the Republic of Kazakhstan, most of which are introduced into scientific circulation for the first time. In the course of the study, a modernization methodological approach was applied, historical-comparative and historical-genetic research methods were used. Analysis. The article deals with management mechanisms and characterizes the objects of social infrastructure of industrial enterprises of the military complex of the USSR with the example of defense enterprises of such front and rear regions as Stalingrad, Chelyabinsk region and Kazakhstan with regard to the period 1941–1945. The difficulties of functioning of working hostels, health centers, nurseries, canteens, subsidiary farms, caused by extreme conditions of wartime and a general lack of material and financial resources, are shown. Results. During the analysis, it was possible to establish regional differences in the activities of social infrastructure facilities, violations of the principle of social justice and unsatisfactory quality of social services provided were noted. Using the example of three regions of the USSR, the conclusion is made about the importance of social policy at industrial enterprises for improving production discipline and the survival of workers. Authors’ contribution. M.N. Potemkina analyzed the documents of the Joint State Archive of the Chelyabinsk region, developed the methodological foundations of the study, formulated the main results; R.S. Zharkynbayeva analyzed archival sources from the Archive of the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan, which allowed to determine the regional features of the social infrastructure of industrial enterprises. E.V. Anufrieva participated in identifying documents from the archives of the Volgograd region and writing the final text.