Development of Brigadeself-Government as an Indicator of Democratization of the Political Culture of Workers (Based on the Archival Materials of the Ferrous Mettalurgy Enterprises of the Urals 1976–1985 Years)

The article presents the results of a study of the history of the development of brigade self-govern-ment and the political culture of the workers of the Ural ferrous metallurgy enterprises in the period from 1976–1985. The authors analyzed an array of archival documents of party and trade union organizations, on the basis of which the dynamics of the growth of progressive forms of labor and management are demonstrated. It is noted that the brigade form of work was improved, which involved the inclusion of workers in solving production and management tasks. The self-management mechanism allowed workers to make decisions about the standards of production, recruitment and placement of personnel, determine the labor participation rate of each member of the brigade, organize professional development and the combination of specialties, as well as regulate financial flows in the brigade, take increased obligations, participate in socialist competitions. Much attention was paid to the selection and placement of foremen, increasing their level of economic and political knowledge. The party organizations controlled the introduction of bri-gade forms of organizations and labor incentives. The events mentioned by the authors of the article contributed to the increase in labor productivity and the democratization of the management process.