ARE THE WORKERS EXPLOITED IN RUSSIA?

Southland Times, Issue 25313, 17 June 1935, Page 5

ARE THE WORKERS EXPLOITED IN RUSSIA?

To the Editor. Sir, —I am honoured by your lengthy leader entitled “Marx and Russia” in the Times of June 14, which I take to be a reply to my letter of that issue also bearing the title “Marx and Russia.” There are many points raised in your article which I feel eager to take up, but as your space and your readers’ time is precious I must confine myself to one or two. So you must excuse me, Mr Editor, if I skip right down your article to where your “interesting nut” lies waiting to be cracked. You state “There is another interesting nut'for the Marxian theorists to crack.” Marx attacked the profit element of the capitalist system and put on it the responsibility for the ultimate breakdown of the system. Today the Soviet of Russia has established in great part a system through which the State becomes the exploiter of labour and earner of profit, part of which it turns back into industry for the increase of production.” It is this aspect of the Russian system you suggest will finally bring about the end of the Soviet system, in just the same way as Marx predicts the downfall of the capitalist system. Now I want to draw your attention to a little omission of yours because it is very vital to the subject under discussion. After saying “Russia is an exploiter of labour and earner of profit, part of which it turns into industry for the increase of production.” Part of which? You have omitted to tell us what they do with the other part. We know what becomes of this part under our system; it goes into the pockets of the capitalist. Not so in Russia for there are no capitalists there. Perhaps I should tell you. In Russia after wages have been paid a certain portion of the surplus (not required for further production) goes back to the workers themselves for the improvement of their material and cultural life. Under capitalism, a surplus in our production machine means more unemployment and less wages for the workers. The more goods there are in the market the less the workers can get. In your article “The Way Out” you suggest a further lowering of wages which would mean less consumption and so aggravate the position. There can be no surplus clogging the productive machine in Russia. The more the worker produces the more he gets; whilst unemployment is unknown. With every increase in production the Soviet workers stand to gain. This explains why the masses are behind the government. The factors responsible for the destruction of capitalist society are not present in the Russian system and, therefore, such a catastrophy as threatens capitalism is unthinkable there. Your “interesting nut” has a very thin shell after all; instead of a kernel we find a myth. In order to prove that an increasing portion of this surplus goes to the workers I intend quoting a few figures. Figures which have been investigated by outside authorities and proved to be correct. The advantages of the Soviet system have already made it possible to eliminate completely unemployment and introduce the seven hour day in industry, to destroy poverty and want in the villages. Wages steadily grow: The total wages fund throughout the whole economy amounted to 21 billion roubles in 1931 and 41 billion roubles ■n 1934. The average monthly wages have increased from 93 roubles in 1931 to 148 roubles in 1934. Family income increased: Owing to the abolition of unemployment and to increased employment in workers families, the income of the workers family has grown far more than the average wages of the individual worker. In 1930 the average number of dependants per employed person was two, and in 1933 1.7. Housing investments by the Government during the past four years

amounted to 5552 million roubles which made it possible to move 5.5 million persons into new houses. The welfare of the workers has also grown through the enormous Governmental expenditure on social insurance. The social insurance budget has been almost doubled in four years—from 2850 million roubles .to 5300 million roubles. These enormous funds which have been turned over by the State to the trade unions have made it possible to extend the system of hospitals, health stations, dispensaries, polyclinics, rest homes and sanatoriums. As a result 1,341,000 people have been served this year (1934) at rest homes, sanatoriums and health resorts at the expense of the social insurance funds alone. Where and in what country apart from the U.S.S.R., does the worker have the opportunity to receive annually a full rest for two weeks and improve his health in rest homes and sanatoriums? In order to give you some idea of'the vastness of this insurance scheme (noncontributory for the workers) Jet me say that the funds dispensed in 1934 equalled the combined budgets of four European countries namely, Poland, Latvia, Czechoslovakia and Rumania. The improvement of labour conditions: Giving much attention to the improvement of labour conditions, the State has spent in the past four years 577 million roubles on safety measures and labour protection. This has resulted in a sharp decline of the sickness and accident rate in production. The growth of the Social insurance budget has made it possible to introduce a new form of social insurance—social insurance against old age to all workers in the national economy. Disability pensions to workers have been considerably increased. The Social insurance budget plays a decisive part in the improvement of the life of the children. While in 1931 the appropriations for children’s institutions amounted to 45 million roubles, in 1934 they amounted to 840 million roubles. Great advances have been made in the cultural life of the workers. Expenditure on this work has increased from 245 million roubles in 1931 to 609 million roubles in 1934. This, Mr Editor, proves the great improvement of the workers’ conditions in the United Soviet Socialist Republic and explains what they do with that portion of the surplus which you overlooked in your article, and which goes into the pockets of the private capitalist under our present system, but in the U.S.S.R. goes to the improvement of the living conditions of the working class and the raising of their cultural level. I am, etc., ECONOMIST NUMBER 2. [Our correspondent forgets that many of the things done by the State in Russia are also done in capitalist countries. There is still unemployment in Russia, as the Bolshevik propagandists admit. The “profit” element exists still. We don’t think it will end the Soviet system of government, but if it is fatal in an industrial system as Marx says, its presence in the Russian system is an important fact. —Ed. S.T.]