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# The Five-Year Plans In 1927, Stalin initiated "five-year plans" to transform Soviet industry. These were not truly plans, but rather ambitious targets. Industrialization was overseen by the Gosplan (State Planning Authority) with commissariats coordinating different branches. Factory-level Part...

# The Five-Year Plans In 1927, Stalin initiated "five-year plans" to transform Soviet industry. These were not truly plans, but rather ambitious targets. Industrialization was overseen by the Gosplan (State Planning Authority) with commissariats coordinating different branches. Factory-level Party officials ensured orders were followed. Five-Year Plans aimed to dismantle independent businesses (Nepmen), forcing small businesses and shopkeepers to join state cooperatives. "Bourgeois experts" were removed and many were accused of sabotage, hindering progress. The Party struggled to find enough skilled labor. By 1934, only 17% of Moscow's workforce was skilled, and even fewer elsewhere. ## The First Five-Year Plan (1928-1932) The primary goal was to drastically increase heavy industry (coal, steel, iron). Targets included: * 300% increase in production * Coal, iron, and steel production increases * Oil and machinery production increases * 600% increase in electricity production * Doubling of light industry production A new industrial city, Magnitogorsk, was built around Ural Mountains steel works. Propaganda greatly touted the plans. However, planned production targets were often missed. While electrical output tripled, coal and iron production doubled, and some steel production increased, the majority of goals were not met. The government relied on "shock brigades" – the most skilled workers – to boost output and provide an example. Alexei Stakhanov, a coal miner, exemplified this, producing 15 times the average amount of coal during his shift. Factory managers were under tremendous pressure to meet or exceed targets. Methods included diverting resources from other factories and falsifying production figures. To complete projects, the government utilized forced labor of Gulag prisoners for labor-intensive tasks (e.g., White Sea Canal), with a high death toll. 10,000 prisoners died in the Canal project alone. ## Consequences for Ordinary People The plans caused significant hardships for everyday citizens. * **Harsh working conditions:** Factory managers, prioritizing output over worker safety, contributed to countless accidents. * **Low productivity:** Reports indicated widespread worker slacking/neglecting machinery, which was exacerbated by lack of training. * **Low quality consumer goods:** Consumer goods suffered severely with widespread shortages, poor quality, and a lack of choices. * **Example:** The Stalingrad tractor factory aimed to produce 300 tractors monthly but in June 1930 only produced eight, and the tractors often broke down.