The Degree of Labour Intensity of Collective Farmers during the Great Patriotic War: With Reference to Molotov (Perm) Region

This article highlights the issue of increasing labour intensity among collective farmers during the Great Patriotic War. The dynamic of labour costs of the rural population was analysed using the case of the Molotov (Perm) Region, a typical rear territory of the time. The source base of the research is constituted by archival materials, including recently declassified statistical reports, protocols of district executive committees, and administrative documentation of district and regional levels. The author considers the wartime situation using the modernisation approach, seeing it as a crisis associated with the breaking, reorganisation, and complication of agricultural production activities. The materials are analysed using the comparative historical method. Documentary sources confirm the thesis of high labour intensity in agricultural production during the wartime period. In the year 1944, collective farmers in Molotov (Perm) Region had, on average, 335 labour (working) days, which was 20 % higher than the country average at the time. Following the increase in labour intensity caused by the war, the traditional rhythm of agricultural work in the region was largely transformed so that the workload of farmers became high throughout the year. The combination of tough labour conditions and ingrained intrinsic motivation contributed to the reorganisation and greater efficiency of agricultural activities. However, heavy physical exertion, low levels of mechanisation of work, and the lack of proper recuperation resulted in mass psychological burnouts among collective farmers by the end of the war. In fact, already in 1945, a decline in the level of labour productivity was recorded among the collective farms of Molotov (Perm) Region.