ABSTRACT
This chapter describes the most fundamental of all problems facing Soviet agriculture—that of a wasteful utilisation of resources. It presents evidence as to the magnitude of the problem and explains its underlying causes. For clarity’s sake, the chapter utilizes the traditional division of factors of production into labour, land and capital. It examines the conflict between kolkhoz management and the household, and deals with two cases of conflict between the party and kolkhoz management. An important part of the explanation of the falling productivity of labour is the changing structure of the kolkhoz labour force, caused by the departure of the most productive people for the cities. Soviet rural-urban migration is becoming an increasingly serious problem, due to the rapid drain of agricultural manpower. The chapter shows that the real root of the kolkhoz labour problem is to be found at the very foundation of the kolkhoz system as it emerged under Stalin.
