ABSTRACT
Stalin'sindictmentof"left"egalitarianismin1931focusedontheallegedfailure ofprevailingwagescalestoincorporatesufficientskilldifferentialsandtoprovideadequatemonetaryrewardsforworkersengagedin"heavy"asdistinctfrom "light"labor."Inanumberofestablishments,thewageratesareestablishedin suchamannerthatthedifferencealmostdisappearsbetweenqualifiedlaborand unqualifiedlabor,betweenheavylaborandlightlabor."Theconsequence,accordingtoStalin,wasthattheunskilledoftenlackedtheincentivetoacquire neededskills,whilethehighturnoverratesofskilledworkersreflectedtheir needtomovefromplanttoplantuntiltheyfmallyfoundonethatproperly valuedtheirrareskills.Whoorwhatwasresponsibleforthisstateofaffairs?The timehadnotyetarrivedwhenallsuchproblemsandpolicymistakeswouldbe attributedtothenefariousactivitiesof"enemies"oftheregime.Indeed,Stalin's explanationseemedtofocusonthefailureofstateandunionofficialsresponsible forwagefixing(andprematurelyguidedbyegalitariansentiments)toheedthe policyimplicationsoftheMarxistclassics:
MarxandLeninsaythatthedifferencebetweenqualifiedandunqualified workwillexistevenundersocialism,evenafterthedestructionofclasses,that onlyundercommunismmustthisdifferencedisappear,thatinviewofthis wagesevenundersocialismmustbepaidaccordingtoworkdone,andnot accordingtoneed.Butouregalitariansamongthemanagersandtradeunionists donotagreewiththisandsupposethatthisdifferencealreadyhasdisappeared inourSovietsystem.Whoisright-MarxandLeninortheegalitarians?1
